
COFYHICIIT DEPOSIT 



iS^^13fexol,Evh<Ti:^ 



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THEniRROR 
Of NEWTON 

PAST AND PRKENT 




PUBLISHED BY 

THE NEWTON FEDERATION 

OF WOMEN'S CLUBS 



'e*^!^^^* ^^VA^^^r^r^i-c^ 14^*^' 



^ 



A mirror of glass reflects, as we pass, 
Ourselves as our family sees us. 

This riirror will sKow where we ought to go 
To purchase the goods that will please us. 




« 






THIS PAGE IS RESERVED THROUGH 
THE CONtRiaUTION OF 

^IjeparlJ, iBtortoell Companp 

BOSTOIN 



LIBRAliV'oT bONQRCSS 
Two OoDHs Rocfllved 

-viAV 20 i9or 

Cepyrreht Entry 

CLASS 4x XXc, No. 

COPY B. 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON PAST 
AND PRESENT 



CONTENTS 

Foreword Helen C. Taylor i 

Editorial Mabel R. Boyden 3 

PAGES FROM NEWTON'S HISTORY 

Newtox: \'illage, Town, and City Albert Perry Walker 5 

Memorabilia ,6 

Will of Edward Jackson Letter to General Hull from his Son 

Two old Receipts Constitution of the Newton Temperance So- 

Abraham Fuller and Isaac Hull ciety and Lyceum 

General William Hull Our Postal FaciHties Fifty Years Ago 

Tee Educatioxai. Life of Newtox Wallace f. Boyden 46 

The Eliot Memoki'.l William C. Bales 57 

The Religious Life of Newtox 59 

The Congregational Churches The Universalis! Church 

The Baptist Churches Church of Y'ahveh, Second Advent 

The Episcopal Churches The Newton Theological Institution 

Methodism in Newton The Walker Missionary Home 

Unitarianism in Newton Home for the Children of Missionaries 

The Catholic Church in Newton Hasselton House 

The Newtonville New-Church Societv 



lU 



PHASES OF NEWTON CIVIC LIFE 

The Newtox Free Library .and its Br.\nches Elizabeth P. TUurston 

Ne'.vtox Charities 

The Newton Hospital The Rebecca Pomroy Newton Home for 

The Newton Hospital Aid Association Orphan Girls 

The Newton Hospital Catholic Aid Society The Mothers' Rest Association 

The Newton District Nursing Association The Newton Home for Aged People 

The City Farm The \\'orking Boys' Home Industrial School 

The Associated Charities The Nonantum Boys' Club 

The Day Nurseries of Newton 

Metropolitax Parks ix Newtox J. C. Brimblecom 

Village Impro\eiient Societies 

The Newton Centre Improvement Association The \illage Improvement Society of Newton 

The Auburndale Village Improvement Society Upper Falls 

The Newton Highlands Improvement Associa- The Newtonville Improvement Association 

tion The Nonantum Improvement Association 

The Waban Improvement Society 

Freemasonry in Newton Lewis E. Biiiitey 

Odd Fellowship in Newtox Harney C. Wood 

The Graxd Army of the Repltblic in Newton George M. Fiske 

The Newton Young Men's Christian Association Harry Whitney Bascom 

Daughters of the Revolution Mrs. Alexander M. Ferris 

Daughters of the American Revolution Fanny P. Allen 



C-ON'TKNTS 



Literary avd Siktial t'i.uB.s iii 

The Wi-sl Newton Hook Club The Newton Boat Club 

The Ever)- Saturday Club The Newton Club 

The Tuesday Club The Neighborhood Club 

The Neighbors The Hunnewell Club 

The Newton Ccnln- Ktiding Club The Hrue-Burn Country Club 

Chautauqua Club The North Gale Club 

The Players The Newton Industrial Club 

The Newton rEDEBATiox ov Women's Ci.i'bs and the Federated Clubs 124 

West Newton Educational Club Newton Ladies' Home Circle 

Newtonvillc Woman's Guild Auburndale Review Cljb 

Newton Social Science Club Shakespeare Club, Newton Highlands 

Newton Equal Suffrage League Waban Woman's Club 

Newton Highlands Momlay Club Pierian Club 'if Newton I'pper Falls 

Newton Centre Woman's Club Newton Mothers' Club 

LEAVES FROM NKW'l'ON PORTFOLIOS 

Some Reminiscences of Tin: Old Kims fCmina Claflin lUlis 135 

A Distinguished Home hlizubrlli Sluart Phelps 140 

Industrial Traininc. Sarah Ionise Arnold 142 

Memories of One Home Mrs. Xathaniel '/". l/Zcn 145 

The Star of Norumbeca Mice Rankit 149 

Just Enough: Danger: Popularity . Selma Ware I'aine 154 

Biros of Nexxton, Past and Present t'. J. Maynard 155 

W'ayside Browsings ... Utcia E. Auryansen 156 

Without a Chauffeur ... . . . M.C.T. 158 

Through the Looking Glass Electa .V. L. Walton 161 

On the Palatine Him Richard Burton 163 

OUR CO-NTRIBITORS' CLUB 

The Mirror Harriette F. Mclntyrc 164 

Conversational Reciprocity imos R. Wells 164 

On Growing Old Gr.^cefully . Mary R. Martin 165 

The Body's R6le S. W. P. 166 

Verses to Mrs. Walton .... .fiilia Ward Hour 166 

Newton's Superiority //. -U. 166 

My Face "67 

Under the Car light .'vhn Preston True 167 

W/Vnted: a Happy Medium 168 

Copyright, i<)07, by the Newton Federation of Women's Clubs, Newton, Mass;u husetls 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON ADVERTISER 




PALMER'S 



Tailored Undermusllns 

Combination Corset Cover and 

Skirt 

$2.00, $3.00,$3.25, $3.75, $4.50, 

$6.00 to $11.25 



UNDERMUSLIN SPECIALTY SHOP 

SHIRT WAISTS AND CORSETS 



37 Temple Place 



Combination Corset Cover and Skirt, 

Combination Corset Cover and Drawers, 

Combination Corset Cover and Long Skirt, 
Nightgowns, Long and Short, Skirts, 

Drawers, Tie Corset Covers, Brassieres, 
Corset Covers, Bust Extenders, and 
Bust Supporters. 

Wedding Trousseaus and Matched Sets 
$4.95 to $36.9^ 

In the very latest effects and importations, comprising hand-loom 
eml)roideiy in Rose, Bow-knot, Dewdrop, Cobweb, French Knots, 

anil t)l(l Enp;lisli EniliniiiK'ries, Fiench, English, German, Italian, 
and S|ianisli \al. Laces, in the most dainty and beautiful designs. 
Also, new effei-ts in Duclic-st-. Mechlin, and Baby Irish Laces. 

We ask yon before purchasing this class of Lingerie to make a 
visit to this Specialty Shop, the only one of its kind in Boston. 

We are so situated, owing to our light expenses, that we can 
absolutely save you twenty per cent, on all your purchases. 




c/1 Friend 



HENRY E. BOTHFELD 



Real Estate 



101 TREMONT STREET 



BOSTON 



////• \lll!l;i>i; 1)1 \i:\\in.\ \l)\ i:i;i isi.l; 




Cuticura Soap and Cuticura Ointment, the Great Skin Cure, have become 
the world's favourites for preserving, piirifyini;, and beautifying the skin, 
for eczemas, rashes, itchings, and irritations, for pimples, blackheads, red, 
rough, and oily complexions, for cleansing the scalp of crusts, scales, and dan- 
druff, and for dry, thin, and falling hair, for softening, whitening, and soothing 
red, rough, and sore hands, and itciiing, tender feet, for baby rashes, itchmgs, 
and chafings, for sanative, antiseptic cleansing, as well as for all the purposes 
of the toilet, bath, and nursery. Guaranteed absolutely pure under United 
States Food and Drugs Act, and may be used from the hour of birth. 

Cutitura Sonp combines delicate, mfJicinal, emollient, sanalise, and antiseptic proper- 
ties Jeri\ed from Cuticura, the (jreat Skin Cure, with tlie purest of saponaceous ingredi- 
ents and the most refreshing of flower odours. 

Cutlcur.\ RcmiJIi-s.iro snIJ throuehoul llie wnrl.l. n.-p..ls: LnnJnn, >t. Charterhouse Sq.; Pari*, s, Rur 4p la 
R. Towns «i Co.. SvJnfv: lnJI.>. B. K. I'aul. Ciltull.i: China, Honn Konc Drue Co ; Japan. 
"J.. C.ipi- Town, *'tc. : Russia. Ferrfin, Moscow; U. S. A.. Poller 
- I'ust-lrcc. Cuticura Booklet on the Skin anJ Scalp. 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON ADVERTISE! 



Delicious and Extremely EGonomicai in Use 

One 1-4 lb. packet will make SO cups of the most healthful, 
stimulating, and acceptable beverage the world produces. 

UNLIKE COFFEE 

it is Absolutely Free from Stomach or /Nerve Destroying 
Properties. 

"SALADA" 

TEA 

Is sold !n Sealed Packets onig. Preserving All of its Native Purity and Aroma 

Black, Mixed, Green, Oolong, 30c., 40c., 
50c., 60c., and 70c. per lb. at your Grocer's 



CHAPIN & ADAMS, 206 State Street, Boston, Wholesale Agents 




////•; MIHROli OF SEWroS M)\i:iaiSKR 



WILLIAM p. BEMIS. Telephone Connection 
ASA C. (EWETT. 

BEMIS &JEWETT 

Pdinting and Decordting. 

Foreign and AV/ 11 D 

Domestic Wall rapers 

Upholstering in all its Branches. Upholstery 

Goods, Windoiv Shades, Muslin and Lace 

Curtains, Rods, Fixtures, etc 



BRAY BUILDING 
Newton Centre, Mass. 



Chapel Street, 

Needham, Mass. 




Herbert N. Smith barren & Hill Coal Co. 

Complimentary 



(INCORPORATED) 

67 UNION STREET 



NEWTON CENTRE 



CO/VIRUIIVIEINTS OR 

FRAINK FROST <Sc CO, 

GROCERS 



Bray's Bloi,^k 



INevvton Centre 



SERVICE 

We try harder to please old customers than we do I C \/IIIRPI-l\' fL, CC^ 

10 get new ones. Kor we know that when we *-^- ^- IVH^IXT n I (X V^VV. 
do really please our old customers we get lots of 

new ones. . I n • • 

This policy accounts for our success in the past, (irnrPriP<; AnH I rnVl<;iOn<; 

and we observe it now more earnestly than ever. VJl'-'V-CllCS ClllU 1 lUVlSHJllS 



WILLIAM HAHN 
PH A RMACIST 

Bray's Block • Nrwion Centrr. Mass. 



Nrwton Highl«nd» 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON ADVERTISER 



NEW ©utertoear ^!)op 

Ladies' and Misses' SUITS in Ml or Made to ORDER 

Latest Models, Newest Materials, (t 1 A CA ■<-/-> ^AO ^A 

and F.nely Tailored q>i0.3U tO CjjO^J.OU 

COATS .... 3.75 to 25.00 
WAISTS . . . 1.00 to 28.50 
SKIRTS .... 5.00 to 30.00 

Special: 20 per cent, discount allowed on purchases to customers 
bringing this advertisement. 

ALSO CARRY A COMPLETE ASSORTMENT OF FURS 
Furs repaired and remodelled at exceptionally low prices during the summer months 

WILLIAM V. FISHEL CO. 

161 Tremont Street, Boston 

Cold Storage for Furs 

LAMSON ca, HUBBARD 
HATTERS = AND =^ FURRIERS 

FOR MEN AND WOMEN 

90 to 94 Bedford Street (Comer Kingston) 173 Washington Street 

BOSTON. MASS. 

EMERSON SHOES 

If you will call at any of our Emerson Shoe Stores, we shall 
be pleased to show you Emerson Shoes suitable for all occasions. 
For style, fit, comfort, and durability they cannot be surpassed. 

$3.50 $4.00 $5.00 

THREE BOSTON STORES: 

185 Summer Street, Dewey Square, opposite South Station 
Comer Washington and W^ater Streets 
Comer Court and Hanover Streets 



Till-: Mih-h'd 


h- ol- M.W TO 


V M>vi:irnsi:R 


LUTHER PAUL 


& CO. 


COAL^ 


and 


WOOD 




Newton Centre 



ALVORD BROS. & CO. 
Newton Real Estate, Mortgages, Insurance 



(79 Mii.K Stkeei, 
OFFICES ] Newton Centre 
( Newtonville 



Compliments of a Friend 



LIBRARY BUREAU 

LETTER PILES 
43 Federal Street .*. .*. .*. Boston 



Kendall, Taylor & Stevens A. I. ENGLISH & CO. 

ARCH ITFCTS ^^''P^"^^^^ ^^^ Builders 



All Jobbing promptly attended to 



Bcrtrand E Taylor 

Henry H Kendall 

Edward V 5l«veni BOSTON, flASS. 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON ADVERTISER 



A. DUDLEY DOWD 

Real Estate Broker 
Mortgages, Insurance 

Newton Property a Specialty 

Houses built on Architects' plans and sold 
on easy terms. Better than Rent 

A. DUDLEY DOWD 

Tel., Main 1246 16 State St., Boston 



R. T. ADAMS & CO. 

HARD WOOD FLOORS 

24 Bromfield Street 
Telephone, Main 3766 BOSTON 



Compliments of .... 



EDGAR W. WARREN 



G. N. B. SHERMAN 



DEALER IN 



Hardware and Paints 

Kitchen Furnishings 
28 Lincoln St., Newton Highlands 

Tel., N. S. 134-1 



A great many people — the number is increasing — 
know that 

JOHN TEMPERLEY 
printer,,, 

(who does, promptly and correctly, a large assortment 

of Society, Commercial, Pamphlet, and Job 

Printing) is located at 

BRAY BLOCK 
75 Union Street, Newton Centre 

(Telephone, S63 Newton South) 

Estimates Furnished upon Application 

The Town Crier is published h\) him every Friday 



IVILLIAM M. L McADAMS 

i>tattmirr 
J^nutrr anil IGttlunira^ltrr 

Blank Book Manufacturer 

14-16 Federal and 113-115 Congress Sts. 
BOSTON 



W, O. KNAPP & CO, 
.., Grocers ,., 

NEWTON CENTRE 

Established 1869 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON ADVERTISER 



E. \V. CONAINT 

Staple and Fancy 



G 



roceries 



KRirrS and V KGl-.TABLI-.S 



Telephone. 
Ne«l..n South 322-1 HABA.>, MASS. 




Charles 
E. Cobb 

Fine Arts 
Galleries 
Pictures of 
Good 
Quality. 
Framing in 
all Styles. 
Art Novel' 
lies. 

346 Boyltton 
StrMt 
BOSTON 



WILLIAM CLAXTON BRAY 

Complimentary 



If you «ou 


Id 


show 


s«inie 


business 


thrift. 


You 


cun't 


on 


quiel 


»utei 


rs drift: 




Ther 


e's one meunv 


e>er> 


hustler 


tries : 


You 


kDOW 


It 


not? 


•TIs. 


ADVERTISE ! 



Farley, Harvey & Co. 

'""'iS^^i^i^r DRY GOODS 

141 to 149 Essex Street 
BOSTON 

C. D, HARVEY A. C. FARLEY W T KARLEY 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON ADVERTISER 



A store 
wKere a 
complete 
stock of 
Builders 
SKelf and 
Fancy 
Hardware 
can be four 
at right 
prices. 




Also Photo- 
graphic, 
Baseball, and 
Athletic 
Goods. 
Fishing 
Tackl?. 
Garden 
and Grass 
Seeds. 
Paint, Oils, 
and 



Headquarters for Manual Training BencKes, Tools, and Supplies 

CHANDLKR & BARBKR 

122-126 SUIVIMER STREET - - - - BOSTON 



CHARLES F.KIRTLAND & CO. 



WALL PAPERS 

Wholesale and Retail 

Room Mouldings, Window Shades 

Tinting and Decorating 
26 and 28 WASHINGTON STREET and 

348 and 350 BOYLSTON STREET ^^o BOYLSTON STREET, BOSTON, mass. 

Selling exigents for E. G. HIGGINS COMPANY 
BOSTON j Telephone, 483 Richmond 



Draperies and Upholstery Stuffs 

Wall Hangings, Antique and Willow 

Furniture, Bric-a-brac 




ZfAe J^orace !Partrid^e Co. 



College, School, and Club 
Athletic Outfitters 



ERYTHlNd FOB HEALTH and SPORT 
Send for Illustrated Catalogue 

TJha JVorace iPartridya Co. 

B* FRAHKI-IN STRBET 



77//; \ni;i:i)R or .\i:\\ iir\ .\h\ i.ki isi-.h 



SMITHS 
PATTERSON 
COMPANY 



Diamond 
Merchants 

Jewelers 

AND 

SaVERSMDITHS 



THAYEK McNEIL 
& HODGKINS 

BOOTS and SHOES 



47 Tempic PUce 
15 West Street 



Boston, Mass, 



^ MrKENNLY^WATERB URY (b MPANY. 



Desi9iien.)faiiiifu;titiTrs nl JiDbbcn^^ 
XECXRIcCtJLS^znafQn^ '^ ' 



:FIXrDKES 



"mP/J^ 



t' 



'S'JSJMV'.^li.liostoR. Mass? 



A BOOK WORTM BUYI/SG 

HEALTH THROUGH SELP = CONTROL 

IN THINKING, BREATHING. EATING 

By WILLIAM ANTHONY SHINNEY. A.M. 

$1.20 net. $1.30 pottpald 

.\ well known tiacher of physical cullurc puis the result of years of studv .»nd ol>ser\.Hi..n int.. 
the most practical ami valu.ilile aiil U> licaltlifnl aiut h.ippv liiini; ><.l pul.lishe.l 
LOTHkOP, LEE & SHEPARD CO., BOSTON 







'^^^^ 






THE MIRROR OF NEWTON 

PAST AND PRESENT 



FOREWORD 



THE Newton Federation of Women's 
Clubs is approaching its twelfth 
birthday. As steadily as the years 
have rolled on the Federation has grown 
in wisdom and power, until it ventures 
to ]a'f-cm it-ilf, a well-organized work- 
ing 1mh1\, ■1ii\;:1 to the welfare of the 
city." 'i'liii-Ueii years ago the need of 
united club work became manifest to 
officers of women's clubs in the various 
villages of Newton; and in the follow- 
ing year — 1895 — after a period of utmost 
care and consideration, our Federation 
was organized. To-day we extend most 
cordial greeting to all who come to join 
us in our festivities on that "good ground, 
the Old Elms." May our hospitality prove 
as cordial and gracious as that which was 
extended to all who came to the Claflin 
homestead in bygone days. 

To the Newton Federation of Women's 
Clubs is gix^en the privilege and honor of 
being the first to introduce to citizens of 
Newton the grand possibilities which our 
city has in the possession of a large, central 
gathering place. Through centralization 
of social and public interest will come 
unity and strength. 

The constitution of our Federation is 
simple, namely "This Federation shall be 
neither sectarian nor partisan, but hos- 
pitable to all thoughts affecting the welfare 
of the city and the interests df humiinitv. 
Its object shall be to secure more thoniugh 
acquaintance; and, in case of need, united 
action among women's clubs of Xewton." 
In fulfilment of the purpose to be ''hos- 
pitable to all thoughts affecting the welfare 
of the city," and to promote better ac- 
quaintance among eleven hundred women 
whom our Federation represents, the officers 



and executive board of the Newton Feder- 
ation of Women's Clubs, together with 
members of the federated clubs, have 
undertaken the festival, of several days' 
duration, to which we welcome you. We 
offer you, not merely amusement: but, with 
spice of entertainments, nuu h which is of 
a serious nature, hoping that :ill will meet 
your approval. 

This Mirror of Xewton, Pa si and Present, 
with all its reflections, will be a valuable 
possession to every one interested in the 
history of New-ton. We invite you to 
visit in the rooms of the old mansion a 
loan e.xhibition of great value and broad 
historical interest. Books, pictures, house- 
hold and fancy articles, stationerv, silver, 
toys you will find fnirn which to select. 
Refreshment of many kinds, for the weary 
and hungry, can be found in abundisnce; 
and withal, evening entertainment, both 
musical and dramatic. Children are not 
forgotten, and one half-day shall be devoted 
to their pleasure and a.musement. It will 
be our pleasure to contribute one half of 
the proceeds of this three days' revelrv 
toward the purchase of the Claflin estate 
for the public good of the city of Newton. 
The other half of our income is to remain 
in the treasury of the Federation, for use 
in meeting any demands which may come 
to us in broad work for the interest of our 
city and of humanity. Thus shall we 
accomplish the purposes expressed in our 
constitution. 

Three points let us keep prominent as 
the motives for so large an undertaking, 
on the part of the busy women of the 
Newton Federation. First, a considerable 
contribution toward the purchase of the 
Claflin estate; second, bringing together 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON 



both men and women of Newton; third, 
to increase, through our magazine. The 
Mirror, and the Loan Exhibition, general 
interest in the history of Newton. 

Since its inception in 1906, plans for 
this festival, or bazaar, to include interests 
mentioned and to be held in the Claflin 
homestead, have been constantly in the 
minds of the Federation Executive Board, 
and of members of a special committee, 
appointed to arrange all details. The 
work of the Ways and Means, or Bazaar 
Committee, has been most carefully or- 
ganized. The President of the Federation 
and presidents of the eleven federated 



clubs, together with others appointed from 
time to time for special work, have con- 
stituted an advisory committee. Each 
department has been given to the care of 
one club, the president of that club acting 
as chairman of that department, and re- 
ceiving on her committee one or more 
members from every club in the Federation. 
In all these departments are many helpers, 
for whose names there is not space here. 

The President of the Newton Federation 
of Women's Clubs takes this occasion to 
thaiik all who participate in our festival, 
whether as workers or as visitors. 

Helen C. Taylor. 



BAZAAR COMMITTEES 



"The Mirror," — Newtonville Woman's 
Guild, Mrs. W. C. Boyden, President. 

The Lo.'VN Exhibition, — Newton Centre 
Woman's Club, Mrs. F. C. Anderson, 
President. 

S.\LES T.ables, — Social Science Club, New- 
ton, Airs. F. H. Tucker, President. 

Colonial Reception, — Waban Woman's 
Club, Mrs. J. H. Pillsbury, President. 

Colonl-vl Teas, — Monday Club, Newton 
Highlands, Miss Katharine T. Bail, 
President. 

Business Committee, — Newton Ladies' 
Home Circle, Mrs. Charles H. Stacy, 
President. 

General Refreshments, — Wtst Newton 
Educational Club, Mrs. Henry K. 
Burrison, President. 

Children's Afternoon, — Pierian Club, 
Newton Upper Falls, Mrs. F. A. 
Thompson, President ; Newton Moth- 
ers ' Club, Mrs. Edward C. Hinckley, 
President. 

Colonial Concert, — Equal Suffrage 
League, Mrs. G. F. Lowell, President. 

Dramatics, — Aubumdale Review Club, 
Mrs. Vine D. Baldwin, President. 

The Magazine Committee is as follows : — 
Mrs. Wallace C. Bovden, Chairman, 

Mrs. H, H, Carter, Mrs. Albert Perrv 

Walker, Mrs. Frank T. Benner, Mrs. 

George W. .\uryansen, Newtonville 

Woman's Guild. 



Mrs. Charles G. Wetherbee, Chairman 
advertising department, Miss Katharine L. 
Bail, Newton Highlands Monday Club. 

Miss Ella B. Smith, Auburndale Review 
Club. 

Mrs. Elizabeth S. Barker, Newton Equal 
Suffrage League. 

Mrs. S. N. Shaw, Newton Mothers' 
Club. 

]Mrs. John W. Woodbridge and Mrs. 
J. \\'. Mclntvre, Newton Social Science 
Club. 

Mrs. S. A. Sylvester, Newton Centre 
Woman's Club. 

Mrs. John E. Titus, Pierian Club, New- 
ton Upper Falls. 

Mrs. Arthur M. Grain, Waban Woman's 
Club. 

Mrs. Alexander Bennett, West Newton 
Educational Club. 

The Magazine Committee gratefully 
acknowledges its obligation to Mr. Her- 
bert R. Gibbs, of Newtonville, for his in- 
valuable aid as literary critic; to Mr. Charles 
Copeland, of Newton Centre, for the artis- 
tic design of the cover; to Mr. J. C. Brim- 
blecom, of the Newton Graphic, for his 
loan of plates for many illustrations; and 
to all others who have furnished plates for 
the embellishment of these pages. 

The Magazine Committee also wishes to 
render hearty thanks to the contributors 
who have given freely of their time and 
strength, to all who have aided in the col- 
lection of advertisements, to the advertisers, 
in fact to all who have in any way contrib- 
uted to the success of this publication. 



EDITORIAL 



" \ POLISHED surface used to re- 
r\ fleet objects" is the dictionary 
"*■ definition of the word "mirror." 
Behold our Mirror, — its surface before 
you now in the form of these pages, pol- 
ished as far as the love, loyalty, pride, and 
good-will of a host of citizens ready and 
willing to record the growth and good 
traits of a city loved can polish any surface. 
And what does our Mirror reflect ? Be- 
ginnings and growth in a multitude of 
ways. Our city has a history upon which 
we may dwell with satisfaction, and the 
Newton of 1907 has its honored place quite 
as much as the Newton of 1688. Look 
with me into the Mirror and enjoy the 
pictures as they pass. Changes, changes 
ever)"\vhere, in people and things. The 
people interest us most, let us look at them 
first. What a fine collection of pictures of 
splendid, efficient men and noble, earnest 
women! And something of what they have 
accomplished our Mirror will show you. 
As the lives of a people show out in their 
real colors in their letters and documents, 
a few of these our Mirror reflects. 

WTiere have the.se people lived? Look 
again. Note the little old-fashioned New 
England farm-house; then the larger, more 
pretentious gambrel-roofed house with its 
roomy garret — a convenient lurking-place 
for ghosts, the garret which Oliver Wendell 
Holmes says is like a seashore where wrecks 
are thrown up and slowly go to pieces. 
Look on and on till we come to the modern 
artistic mansion of to-day, sanitary to the 
last degree. If you look carefully, you 
will see pictures of the home life in some 
of the most cultured in this city of beauti- 
ful homes. 

^\^lere did these people attend school ? 
Another group of pictures beginning with 
the rude little schoolhouse at the cross- 
roads and ending with our stately High 
School building. 

Where were their church homes? See 
the simple little meeting-house and here 
the imposing church edifice of to-day. Re- 
ligion and Education have always trav- 
elled hand in hand, for 
"The riches of the Commonwealth 

Are free strong minds and hearts of health"; 
and these will always be secured 
"While near the church-spire stands the school." 



The Educational life would not be com- 
pletely pictured without a glimpse of the 
Public Library, and closely allied with the 
religious life are the charitable organiza- 
tions, showing a people quick and gener- 
ous in its sympathies to a cry of suffering 
whenever and wherever it may be heard. 

As we note the growth of Newton from 
village to town, from town to city, bits of 
scenery come before us. Photographs of 
scenery — just views — are usually unsatis- 
factory because of the lack of color. But 
our Mirror, of course, reflects the true 
colors; and here you look at Newton with 
its primeval forests, its unbroken fields, its 
seven hills, its extensive plains, its Charles 
River — in fact with all the endowments 
which lavish nature can shower upon a 
place. Thick and fast the changes come, 
showing how thought, care, and artistic 
taste can develop and embellish a spot nat- 
urally beautiful. 

If the early settlers of Newton could re- 
turn to look at our pictures, perhaps none 
would surprise them more than those of 
the various organizations — clubs, social, 
literary, and athletic — which are so prom- 
inent in our day. If they could take time 
to look at these pictures carefully, study 
the purposes of the organizations, look at 
some of their beautiful buildings, and hear 
of their good work and influence, we are 
sure that they would approve. 

So the pictures pass, the grave and the 
gay, — for the fun will come out, as our 
Contributors' Club distinctly shows. As 
you have looked upon them, you certainly 
have observed our Mirror-frame, designed 
by an artist from among us, — a frame sug- 
gesting grateful remembrance of the past. 

And after all, why have we brought our 
Mirror fonvard? 

These are our reasons, — to stimulate the 
spirit of devotion to the city of our birth 
or choice; to try to give our friends some- 
thing which is really worth while concern- 
ing Newton's past and present; to help 
lay deep the foundations for love of city; 
to picture the Newton of 1907; and to pass 
on to posterity the message that we must 
keep our Mirror clear and bright by giv- 
ing to life the best that we have, that the 
best ma}- come back to us. 

Mabel R. Boyden. 



PAGES FROM NEWTON'S HISTORY 



NEWTON 

VILLAGE, TOWN, AND CITY 



BY ALBERT PERRY WALKER 



I. NEWTON AS A VILLAGE 

I. The Founding of New Towne: 1631 

" y WILL make them conform," said King 

I James I. of the eight hundred Puri- 

■*■ tan clergymen who petitioned for re- 
forms within the Church of England in 1603, 
"or I will harry them out of the land." 
This harrying process, continued by 
Charles I. and by Archbishop Laud, led 
to the formation in 1629 of a chartered 
company to plant in New England a self- 
governing Puritan colony. The Governor 
of the Company, John \Mnthrop,'came over 
on the Arhella, the third of seventeen ves- 
sels sent over in 1630; and on the same 
vessel came Deputy-Governor Thomas 
Dudley, Dudley's two sons-in-law Simon 
Bradstreet and Daniel Dennison, and Rev. 
Mr. PhiUips, who are the earliest four 
grantees of lands within the present boun- 
daries of Newton. The A rbella left her pas- 
sengers at Salem, but as that town already 
contained 500 settlers and the new-comers 
wanted land above all things, Winthrop 
led his party across country to Charlestown, 
whence they moved in swarms to form 
plantations at Medford, Ljun, Boston, 
Roxbury, and Watertown. This last set- 
tlement, formed under the leadership of 
Rev. Mr. Phillips and Sir Richard Salton- 
;stall, was near the present Mount Auburn. 

During the first winter the problem of a 
capital for all the towns in the colony was 
repeatedly discussed. It was agreed that 
a fortified town should be built in a central 
location, and the site was chosen where 
Harvard College now stands. The Gov- 
ernor and most of the Assistants pledged 
their word to build there in the spring. 

Copyright, 1907, by Ai 



Dudley, Bradstreet, and perhaps a half- 
dozen others accordingly founded this 
" New Towne " early in the spring of 1631, 
but Winthrop, after building, removed his 
house to Boston, and aU the other Assistants 
pleaded this as an excuse for refusing to 
build. This caused the first great dis- 
sension in the new colony, and led to the 
formation of a "Boston Faction" and a 
"New Towne Faction." The indignant 
Dudley secured a vote of censure upon 
Winthrop from the elders of the church, 
but his "New Towne" might have faded 
from the map had not the General Court 
ordered a company which had been sent 
over by the Rev. Thomas Hooker in Au- 
gust, 1632, to settle there. The next year 
Mr. Hooker arrived with the rest of his 
flock, among them "that heavenly man," 
Mr. John Ha\'nes, who became at once 
the leading citizen of New Towne. His 
wealth (his income was £1000 )'early) 
made him the largest tax-payer; his ex- 
ecutive ability led to his appointment as 
Colonel of militia; his generosity and gen- 
iality made him universally popular. As 
a resident of New Towne, he naturally 
sided with Dudley rather than with Win- 
throp, and the result was the election of 
Dudley as Governor in 1634, and of Haynes 
in 1635. During their terms of office the 
General Court was held at New Towne. 



2. Earliest Grants 0} Land within Newton 
Limits: 1632, 1634 

The Massachusetts Bay Company was 
a joint-stock company governed by a Gov- 
ernor, a Deputy-Governor, a Board of 
Assistants (or Directors), and a General 

!ERT Perry Walker 



THE :\nRROR OF NEWTON 



Court composed at first of all the "free- 
men" (or stockholders), and later of repre- 
sentative freemen from the several towns. 
Within the limits set by the charter it had 
full powers of legislation, not only in the 
enactment of general laws, but also over 
the grants of lands to individuals or to the 
towns. The first recorded grant of lands 
in Newton * was made by the General 
Court to Rev. Mr. Phillips of A\atertown. 
On November 7, 1632, "M"' Philips hath 
30 ac of land graunted him upp Charles 
Rwer, on the south side, begininge att a 
creek a lyttle higher than the first pynes, & 
soe upwards towards the ware." 

In 1634 took place the first distribution 
of lands on a large scale within the present 
bounds of Newton. As each stockholder 
might take up 500 acres of land for every 
;^5o of his stock, the grants (although not 
the only ones made to these persons) give 
a slight hint as to their rating on the books 
of the Company. According to the records 
of the General Court, on April i, 1634, 
"there is a thousand acres of land, & the 
greate [pond] graunted to John Haynes, 
Esq., ffyve hundred acs. graunted to 
Thomas Dudley, esq. Deputy Govn"', 
[five] hundred to Mr. Samuel Dudley, & 
two hundred acres [to] Daniell Dennison, 
all h'eing & being above the falls, [on the] 
easterly side of Charles Ryver." The 
Haynes grant extended from the edge of 
Newton Upper Falls, to and including 
Crystal Lake and a part of Institution 
Hill.f None of the other grants can be 
located, possibly because all such grants 
became void if left unused for three years. 
A month and a half later "There is 500 
acres of land graunted to Mr. Simon Brad- 
streete, lyeing nore west from the lands of 
John Haynes, Esq. & above the falls of 
Charles Ryver, neare the weir"; but a 
later Act stipulated that "no part is to be 
within a mile of Watertowne weir, in case 
the bounds of Watertowne shall extend 
so far on that side of the river." 

This grant, if laid out, would have ex- 
tended from Crystal Lake to Bullough's 
Pond, but the time had not come for the 

* At some risk of confusion the writer has decided to avoid 
the tiresome repetition of such phrases as "the present New- 
ton." "the present lirighl.'H." "tlie i)risent Centre Street," 
believing that the cnnn \! w I'l ,' ^^ .1 \ ■ !m.v. \\\" u -ii. h ii.nnc^ 

are used before their : < • : :' ■ ■ 1 n 

The reader needs. , ',;. 11 

between the ancient I H :■; 

Square, and the moduli \.\H-n, in iIm 1.-]- -1 iln ( li.nli^ 
River. 

t See map, p. 16. 



occupation of lands so inaccessible; never- 
theless, these grants suggest a movement 
of the New Towne folk to get a grip on the 
lands across the river to the southward. 
At first this had been impossible because 
Watertown had acquired earlier rights 
along the river front opposite her own 
territory, and Boston claimed those op- 
posite New Towne. The Watertown 
pastor, Mr. Phillips, already held thirty 
acres of land on the river front beginning 
at Faneuil and extending to the Watertown 
line; Watertown had set apart the adjoin- 
ing district for special purposes connected 
with the fisheries; and Sir Richard Salton- 
stall's cattle were being pastured in the 
region west of Cheesecake Brook. 



3. "N'ew Towne" becomes "Cambridge" 
When Mr. Hooker's company began to 
clamor for more land for pasturage, and 
threatened to remove to less cramped quar- 
ters on the Ipswich, Merrimack, or Connecti- 
cut Rivers, Watertown offered to cede to 
New Towne all her lands south of the river, 
and Boston offered to cede the rest of the 
Brighton and Brookline districts. But 
Hooker's company had "the western 
fever," jealousy had arisen between Hooker 
and Mr. Cotton (the Boston clergyman), 
and the Winthrop faction had been strength- 
ened by the arrival of the popular Sir Harry 
Vane. In the election of 1636 \'ane won 
the governorship, the General Court was 
removed to Boston, and the New Towne 
faction thereupon "refused to play." 
Dudley, Bradstreet, and Dennison secured 
fresh grants in Ipswich and removed 
thither, — apparently abandoning their 
grants in Newton. Hooker with a hun- 
dred companions removed to Hartford; 
and Haj-nes — evidently bound to rule 
somewhere — followed them the next year 
and became the first governor of Connecti- 
cut. New Towne was a second time 
threatened with premature extinction, and 
was again saved by the arrival of a fresh 
congregation, this time led by the Rev. 
Thomas Shepard. The new-comers bought 
the houses and lands of the deserters, and 
life went on as before, except that the 
name of the town was changed to "Cam- 
bridge" in 1638, in honor of the college 
located there the year before, and in mem- 
ory of the college in England of which 
many of the colonists were graduates. 



NEWTON: VILLAGE, TOWN, AND CITY 



4. Settlement oj "Cambridge Village" 
On the departure of Hooker's company, 
the Brookline district reverted to Boston, 
but an agreement was reached, and rati- 
fied by the General Court, by which the 
Brighton district and all the lands to the 
westward on that side oj the river should 
belong to New Towne, excepting a strip 
of 75 acres (the ^lorse's field of later years) 
lying along by the weir which Watertown 
citizens had erected in 1632. Expansion 
to that side of the river began at once, first 
into Brighton and later into Newton. The 
latter was hastened by the fact that a corn 
mill had been built on the Watertown side 
of the falls, that the town, had spread 
rapidly in that direction, and that a foot- 
bridge had been built at the falls, making 
a connecting link in an all-land route from 
Charlestown and New Townie to Boston, 
Roxbury, and the newly founded Dedham. 
Here appears the name of next impor- 
tance in Newton development, that of 
Thomas Alayhew of Watertown, an inde- 
fatigable speculator and promoter of land 
deals and development schemes. May- 
hew takes shares in the mill, buys an inter- 
est in the weir, builds the bridge, and 
gets a grant of the weir lands on the south 
side (the strip still owned by Watertown). 
More importiint still for our present pur- 
poses, ^layhew in some manner becomes 
owner of the strip between the Ha^Ties grant 
and the river at Newton L'pper Falls, and 
also of the five hundred acres lying between 
his weir lands and Mill Street — that is, 
practically all of Newtonville plain. It 
has been suggested that he bought this 
latter from Dudley, but the records are 
missing. On this territory, east of Cold 
Spring Brook and north of Washington 
Street, he builds the first house on Newton 
soil, probably for the use of an employee. 
These transactions undoubtedly encour- 
aged other men to take up lands on the 
south side, first as grazing grounds for 
cattle, and later for planting fields. The 
earliest adventurers built houses for them- 
selves or their employees farther down the 
river, where the travel to Boston and Rox- 
bun,' was sufficient to warrant a regular 
ferry, but by 1639 there were half a dozen 
houses as far west as Faneuil, on the Water- 
town-Roxbury path. In that year, John 
Jackson of Cambridge Town bought one of 
these houses from Miles Ives of Watertown, 
and became the first permanent resident in the 



district. \\'est of the weir lands. Rev. Mr. 
Shepard held several hundred acres. This 
scattered settlement, lying partly in New- 
ton, partly in Brighton, soon became known 
as "Cambridge Village" in distinction 
from the Town proper north of the river. 

By this time Thomas Mayhew had either 
become overloaded with mortgaged prop- 
erty, or he had already conceived the 
scheme (later carried out) of purchasing 
the island of Martha's Vineyard; for in 
1638 he began to dispose of his property 
in Watertown and Cambridge. The pur- 
chasers were Richard Dummer of New- 
bury, who bought lands near the weir and 
southward to Nonantum Square; Thomas 
Dudley, who had moved from Ipswich to 
Roxbury to mend his political fences; and 
Simon Brad street, whose shrewd eye fore- 
saw a rise in value for Newton lands near 
the new settlement. According to the 
records of Suffolk County, on September 29, 
1638, "Thomas Mayhew of W'aterton 
granted unto Simon Bradstreet of Ipswich 
in consideration of 6 Cowes w* he bought 
& received of the saide Simon Bradstreet, 
all that his farme containinge be estema- 
tion five hundered acres lyinge in Cam- 
bridge with all the buildin:.^^ there to be- 
longinge." This pun lK;>r price was no 
"trifling matter," as one writer terms it. 
The coming of a thousand persons a year 
for nearly a decade had kept the price of 
cattle enormously high, and iMayhew's 
"Cowes" would have cost him twenty 
pounds apiece at any time before 1640. 
Then the decline in immigration dropped 
the price rapidly to six pounds. Two 
years alter the Bradstreet purchase Joseph 
Cook acquired 400 acres of land west of 
the Bradstreet farm, and Samuel Shepard, 
brother of the clergyman, received 480 
acres beyond Cheesecake Brook. The 
northern portion of Newton territory was 
thus practically all in private ownership 
by 1640, when Cambridge secured a paper 
title to all her lands by purchase from the 
Squaw-sachem of the local Indians, one 
condition being the gift to her of a new 
coat every winter. This deed of course in- 
cluded the district on the south side of the 
Charles River, and as Boston did not se- 
cure a deed of the Shawmut peninsula 
from the Indians until 1685, Newton's 
legal title to her soil antedates Boston's 
by nearly half a century. 

Meanwhile, Rev. Mr. Shepard and his 



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;kwtox and her neighbors 

tal letters indicate towns formerly included in Ca 



NEWTON: VILLAGE, TOWN, AND CITY 



company in their turn became dissatis- 
fied with their cramped location, and were 
urged by Rev. Mr. Hooker to remove to 
Middletown, Connecticut. The General 
Court, much alarmed, voted in 1641 that 
Cambridge should have the lands in the 
valley of the Shawshine River, "provided 
they make it a village, to have the families 
there settled within three years." Two 
years later, more alarmed still, they voted 
that "Shawshine is granted to Cambridge 
without any condition of making a village 
there; and the land between them and 
Concord is granted them . . . provided 
the church and present elders continue at 
Cambridge." In 1643, therefore, when 
Newton's "First Citizen" settled on Hunne- 
well Hill, the present territory of Newton 
was the southernmost portion of a township 
extending eighteen miles from the Charles 
River to the Merrimack, out of which have 
been carved the towns of Newton, Cam- 
bridge, Arlington, Le.xington, Billerica, and 
parts of Bedford, Watertown, and Lowell. 
This same year, the General Court granted 
to Thomas Mayhew three hundred acres 
of land in exchange for his bridge over the 
Charles River above Watertown weir, mak- 
ing this bridge on the road from Newton 
to Watertown the first state-owned bridge 
in the colony. 

5. Neivton's First Citizens 
So far, the story of Newton has been a 
story of real estate operations. Its his- 
tory as a place of homes dates from the 
advent of Samuel Hyde (1640), Richard 
Park, who came about the same time, 
and Mr. Edward Jackson, who emigrated 
from London in 1643 and bought of 
Samuel Hollys the house and lot on 
the Roxbury path west of his brother 
John Jackson's. This lot of 19 acres lay 
on the Newton side of the boundary line 
which Edward Jackson lived to see drawn 
in 1662. He made numerous other pur- 
chases within Cambridge bounds, and also 
shared largely in the town's various allot- 
ments of common lands among the pro- 
prietors, so that although he made many 
gifts of land during his lifetime, he held 
over 1700 acres at his death. 

His most important purchase appears in 
the following record; "Nov. 23, 1646: — 
Symon Bradstreete of Andover gent, 
granted vnto Edward Jackson of Cam- 
bridg Nailor (for & in consideration of one 
hundred pounds* already pa yd) his fferme 



of fyve hundred Acres of land w'''' was 
lately in the tenure of Tho: Mayhew & 
by him bounded adjoyneing to the Ware 
lands bounded w* Pasto"' Shepheard 
north & Elder Camps west, & the Comon 
South & East." t In 1680 Edward Jack- 
son gave twenty acres in the southwestern 
comer of this farm as a dowry to his daugh- 
ter Lydia on her marriage to Joseph Fuller, 
whose father added ten by purchase on the 
instalment plan. This is the estate which, 
after passing from the Fuller to the Hull 
and Claflin families, is now being acquired 
by the city of Newton through the gift of 
its citizens. 

From 1643 to his death in 1681 Edward 
Jackson was a leader in the village life, — ■ 
in every sense its foremost citizen. When 
the town needed money "for the gratifying 
of M''. Corlett for his paines in keeping 
a Schoole" it was Mr. Jackson who ad- 
vanced ten pounds and took his pay in 
land so situated as "not to prjudice the 
Cow Comon." When the town felt the 
need of a police court, Mr. Jackson was 
one of the three men chosen "to end small 
Causes." Mr. Jackson was appointed to 
lay out highways "on the South Side the 
water, and to act for the Town in appor- 
tioning common lands in e.xchange for 
land taken"; to "Katechise the youth" of 
his district; to levy the ministerial taxes; 
to serve as Selectman, and for fifteen years 
as Deputy to the General Court. So great 
was the respect in which he was held that 
when a controversy over dividing the Town 
arose between the north and the south 
sides, and the Townspeople were denounc- 
ing the Villagers to the General Court, they 
especially excepted Mr. Jackson: "for we 
acknowledge that Mr. Jackson . . . hath not 
been wanting to the ministry or any good 
work among us; and therefore we would 
not reflect upon him in the least." Yet 
Mr. Jackson was the champion of the policy 
of separation, and wrote and presented the 
petitions! He lived to see the village prac- 
tically, though not wholly, independent, 
and died in 1681, at the age of 79. His will, 
interesting as showing the character of a 
wealthy colonist's property at this period, 



.1 the Brad- 
. \\k Bradstreet 

111 pressed on the 
ilr. William P. 
descendant of both Simon 
n. It is here reproduced 



THE jSIIRROR of NEWTON 



is reproduced in full on pages 36-39 of this 
volume. 

It was in 1646 that Rev. John Eliot, 
after fourteen years' study of the Indian 
language, began his missionar)- work with 
the memorable gatherings at Waban's wig- 
wam on the northeastern slope of Nonantum 
Hill. Eliot made three visits to this spot 
at intervals of two weeks, and it is interest- 
ing to note that Edward Jackson's purchase 
of the Bradstreet Farm took place three 
davs before the third visit; so that the 
redemption of the wild lands and of their 



son to foresee the value of Newton lands. 
Before his arrival, Thomas Parrish had 
secured a hundred acres between the brooks 
near upper Mill and Homer streets re- 
spectively, but had not developed the ter- 
ritorv, and Samuel Hvde had a lot south 
of Richard Park's. 

In 164S there was a distribution of waste 
lands along the Dedham Road (Centre 
Street), in lots varying in size according 
to location and quality; and thereafter 
the settlement of the eastern district pro- 
ceeded rapidly. The name of Richard 




THE JACKSON HOMESTEAD 
cupied continuously by Edward Jackson and his descendants afte 
by Timothy Jackson (see p. iS) in 1809 



1670. This house built 



wild inhabitants went on side by side. 
It is Newton's pride that within her bounds 
began the great movement that spread 
through New England until four thousand 
Indians were striving to live civilized lives. 
Nor is this glory lessened by the fact that 
ThuHKis ^[;;)hew and his son had already 
l)e,min to ('!iri-ii:;nize the Indians of ^Mar- 
th;;'- \"iiK\;:nl,— for that work was done 
through Indir.n interpreters, and could 
not com]jare with Eliot's either in its ar- 
duousness or in its importance to the New 
England colonics. 

6. The Fathers cj the Tou'ii oj Xewton: 
1640-1664 
Edw;',rd Jttckson was not the only ]ier- 



Park, who received eleven acres di\ided by 
the highway and built his house near the 
site of the Eliot Church, is perpetuated in 
Park Street. Both John and Edward 
Jackson early acquired holdings along the 
Dedham Road to the southward. In 1650 
three residents of Hingham decided to 
settle in Cambridge Village, and soon held 
more than a thousand acres in the Chest- 
nut Hill district. Vincent Druce settled 
near the Brookline bounds, and Thomas 
Hammond (whose name is borne by Ham- 
mond Street and Hammond's Pond) a little 
farther west. The third of the trio, John 
Parker, settled in the region of Waverley 
Avenue, west of Hammond's land. About 
1652, Captain Thomas Prentice emi- 



NEWTON: VILLAGE, TOWN, AND CITY 



grated from England, and soon, with his 
brother James, acquired a large tract be- 
tween the Parker tract and the Dedham 
Road, extending from Ward Street south 
to the Newton' Boulc\'::i-d. \\ard Street 
itself hands down the iKunc ..f John Ward, 
who married Edward Jackson's daughter 
Hannah and received as her dowry 45 acres 
of land lying between Waban Hill and the 
curve of Hammond Street. In 1658 John 
Kenrick of Boston bought the land along 
the river southwest of the Haynes grant, 
whence the name Kenrick's Bridge. Scat- 
tered purchases by the Jacksons complete 
the story of the eastern district. 

The rest of the tale is briefly told. In 
the middle district, near the river, are the 
Waterto\\'n weir lands; south of them the 
great Bradstreet- Jackson farm; south of 
this, between Bullough's Pond and Crystal 
Lake, the great farm of the brothers Sam- 
uel and Jonathan Hyde, names honored 
in Newton history from that day to this. 
Pastor Shepard and his brother, it will be 
remembered, held grants to the north and 
west of the Bradstreet Farm, but accident 
early threw these into the market. In 1649 
the Rev. Mr. Shepard, returning home 
from a council at Rowley, ■■fell into ;i (|uin- 
sie, with a symptomatic;! fewr, wiiii h sud- 
denly stopped a silver trumpet, from wlunce 
the people of God had often lie;'.nl the joy- 
ful sound." As his brother Samuel had 
already returned to England, Richard Park 
was able to buy a great tract of 600 acres 
extending from the line of Lowell Avenue 
beyond Cheesecake Brook, and from the 
river over the crest of West Newton Hill. 
South of this stretched the Town's com- 
mon lands, unbroken swamp and forest. 
West of it lay the undeveloped lands of 
Joseph Cook, who was absorbed in his 
pubhc duties as Town Clerk, Magistrate, 
Deputy, and Military Commander until his 
return to England in 165S. 

7. Lijc in the New SeUlemeiil 

The life of these earliest adventurers 
was a strange mixture of privation and 
luxury, superstitious vagaries and practical 
activities. Church and state were inter- 
locked with astonishing completeness and 
ingenuity. As the immigrants were in re- 
volt against the authority of the eccle- 
siastical "machine" on the ground that it 
wrought contrary to the Scriptures, the 



new-comers attempted to carry on a dem- 
ocratic government which should base its 
legishtion solely on the Bible. This, of 
course, practically necessitated the re- 
striction of the suffrage to church members. 
It also involved the \-irtual supremacy of 
the clergy and magistrates over the laymen, 
because the former could always contend 
that their acts carried scriptural' authority. 
A curiously paternal government resulted. 
Men were' set in the bilboes for finding 
fault with the acts of the Court. Non- 
attendance at town meeting was punish- 
able by a fine. As the petty business of 
government became more exacting, Towns- 
men (Selectmen) were chosen, with full 
authority during the intervals between 
Town Meetings. The Townsmen met 
"every second Munday" of the month, 
and for their noon meal the Town pro- 
vided "an eight peny ordnary." It was 
ordered that ■•\Mioevcr of the Townsmen, 
fade to be present With in li;;ll an hour of 
the Ringing of the Hell, (wbi.h >h.ll.e half 
an houre after eleven of the . lo. ke) he shall 
both lose his dinner, S: pay a pinte of sacke 
[sherry] or v-^ vallue, to the i:>resent Towms- 
men:'and the like penalty shalbe pa yd by 
any that shall depart from y'= rest with out 
leave." 

Settlers were at first compelled to live 
within half a mile of the Meeting House. 
To e.xclude unorthodox settlers, land must 
not be sold to new-comers without per- 
mission from the town. Strangers must 
not be harbored over night; in 1655 Rey- 
nold Bush of Cambridge \'illage was fined 
twenty shillings for entertaining his own 
son, iatelv immigrated, and the son was 
also fined twenty shillings for "comeing 
as an Inhabitant into the Town with out 
the leave of the Townsmen." The con- 
duct of voung and old was alike subject 
to official control. The General Court 
passed elalxjrate sumptuary laws against 
the wearing of finery, such as coats slashed 
more than once, or laced cloaks. Rev. 
John Eliot declared that "it is a luxurious 
feminine prolixity for men to wear their 
hair long"; and 'the Rev. Mr. Cotton ob- 
jected to veils, because when "not by the 
custom of the place a sign of woman's sub- 
jection, thev were not commanded by the 
apostle." in Cambridge, as elsewhere, 
every child sent to tend cattle or goats 
must spend the time learning to spin or in 
some other useful occupation, John Jack- 



12 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON 



son being charged with enforcing this law 
in Cambridge Village. 

The pubHc use of tobacco was forbidden; 
officers were appointed to catechize the 
youth of the town, to keep them in order 
during divine service, to see that all young 
men were attached to some godly and 
responsible household, to prevent ex- 
cessive drinking. Precautions of every 
sort were imposed by law. It was for- 
bidden to carry fire-coals from one house 
to another except in covered dishes; to 
smoke in the fields (whether because 
smoking tended to slothfulness, or was 
liable to start disastrous fires is not re- 
corded). Citizens were fined if they did 
not attend meeting; if they did not keep 
up their fences; if their hogs went un- 
ringed; if their dogs got the habit of 
pulling the tails of the cattle; if they cut 
wood in the lands without permission; 
if they sold waste timber outside of the 
town. 

Almost from the beginning the current 
of industry in the Massachusetts towns set 
towards commerce and its prerequisite, 
shipbuilding. It was only a year after his 
arrival that Governor Winthrop launched 
his first vessel The Blessing of the Bay 
from his shipyard on Mystic River, 
on the fourth of July, 1631. This date 
was truly the first Independence Day 
for New England's industries; for those 
of the British West Indies and Virginia 
w^ere already well established and eager 
to exchange their own products for those 
of the temperate zone. Fish was a cheap 
food for the slaves on the tobacco and 
sugar plantations, and New England sup- 
plied them from her own shores and those 
of Newfoundland. A hundred thousand 
alewives were taken in two tides at Water- 
town weir. Meat, flour, meal, nuts, wool, 
and lumber were readily exchanged for 
sugar, tobacco, rice, and "cotton. England, 
too, wanted lumber for her shipyards, 
and especially the vast mast and spar 
timbers of which her own forests had be- 
come denuded. It was soon found that 
the lands about Boston harbor had barely 
enough timber for local consumption, 
and restrictions upon the export of lumber 
transferred the industry into the hands 
of New Hampshire; but towns like Cam- 
bridge found their profit in making clap- 
boards and other small stuff, in supplying 
Boston with hay, grain, vegetables for 



home consumption or export, and in 
raising cattle to be shipped south for labor 
or for food. 

From almost the very beginning, the 
milch herd was kept on the Town Common 
in Cambridge proper, Richard Rice being 
paid 35. a day to keep them and drive them 
home half an hour before sunrise and sun- 
set for milking, but the dry cows were 
sent across the river to graze on Nonantum 
Hill and Newtonville Plain. At one time 
they were kept by a cow-herd named 
Wm. Patten, who lodged there continually 
(with every other Sunday off), for twenty 
pounds a season (he, of course, was fined 
if he let one go astray); but in 1647 the 
Town made a bargain with Chief Waban, 
who kept a hunclred and twenty cattle 
through the season for eight pounds, 
six and a half of which were paid in corn. 

"The following Inventory," writes Hon. Will- 
iam Jack.son, "I found on the cover of the first 
Newton Book of Records. It will serve to .show 
something of the wealth of its early inhabitants, 
as well as the relative value of different articles 
of that day. This Inventory was taken and value 
affi.xed by the Towmsmen (Selectmen) in 1645." 

Persons (rateable) . . 135 @ 20;£ = 2700 

Houses 90 @ 28 = 2520 

Oxen 134 @ 6 = 804 

Cows 208 @ 9 = 1872 

Horses 20 @ 7 =140 

ditto 3 years old . . 6 @ 5 =30 

ditto 2 do. . . 9 @ 3 =27 

ditto I do. . . 5 @ 2 =10 

Heifers 3 olds. . . 42 @ 4 =168 

ditto 2 " . . 74 @ 2-10 = 185 

ditto I " . . 79 @ i-io = 1 18-10 

Steers 14 @ 5 = 70 

Sheep ^7 @ i-io = 55-10 

Swine 62 @ i£ = 62 

Goats 58 @ 8/- = 23-04 

2 Barques i-io 

J a Shallop 5 

Goods 9-ro 

£8801.4 

8. The First Church in Nevlon 

Every step in the southward and west- 
ward expansion of the Village carried the 
enterprising settlers farther from the Meet- 
ing House in Cambridge Town, where every 
freeman must be present on Town meeting 
days, where he should be on every Sunday, 
and where his children needed to be daily, 
if they were to profit by Mr. Corlett's 
"painful" teaching. As early as 1654, 
the farmers began to demand that they 



NEWTON: VILLAGE, TOWN, AND CITY 



13 



should "have the ordinances of Christ 
among them, distinct from the Town"; 
but Billerica, which was much farther 
away, was also demanding to be separated 
from Cambridge, and the Church could 
not afford to lose the support of both groups. 
The Town folk therefore besought the 
Villagers to wait "until the Lord shall be 
pleased to enlarge our hands and show us 
our way more clear to a division." 

This petition of the villagers was the 
initial movement in an agitation during 
which the men of Cambridge Village (in the 
words of the Cambridge selectmen) "exer- 
cised the patience of the General Court . . . 
as well as giving trouble to the Town by 
causing them to dance after their pipes 
from time to time for twenty-four years . . . 
in which time they petitioned tlie Court 
near, if not altogether, ten times." In 
1656, John Jackson and Thomas Wis- 
wall appeared before the General Court 
with a petition for release from church 
rates in Cambridge Town. In their reply 
the people of the Town assert (i) that not 
all of the petitioners are freemen (for which 
church membership was necessary) — in 
other words, the religious plea is a sham; 
(2) that some are tenants, not landowners, 
— in other words, they are not vitally in- 
terested parties; (3) that few are more 
than four miles from the Meeting House, 
and those that are "hardly ever" go to 
meeting, although none are more than si.x 
miles off; (4) that other districts have 
equal claims to be set off, and the Church 
can spare none. On this last ground the 
petition was refused. 

Although the Cambridge Church shrank 
from losing any of its 700 members, the 
twenty-two families in the Village bravely 
faced the burden of a separate Church. 
John Jackson gave an acre of land on 
Centre Street for a church building and a 
cemetery, and in its centre the first Meet- 
ing House was built in 1660. With this 
tangible argument, the Villagers secured 
from the General Court in 1661 freedom 
from payment of Church rates to Cambridge 
for all lands and estates more than four 
miles from the Meeting House "by the 
usual paths." This four-mile line, as 
run in 1662, practically determined the 
northeastern boundary of Newton as it 
stands to-day, and permanently separated 
the residents in the Newton part of "Cam- 
bridge Village" from those dwelling in 



the Brighton district, which later took the 
name of "Little Cambridge." In 1664 
John Eliot, Jr., was ordained pastor of a 
flock of 39 members. It was a fitting and 
a notable coincidence that the son of the 
first preacher to the Indians should be the 
first pastor of the first church of Newton, 
and that he and his wife should be the 
first members of the new church to lie in 
the burial-place provided by its first deacon, 
himself the first permanent resident in 
Cambridge Village. 

9. Separation of Newton jrom Cambridge 

In 1672, Edward and John Jackson pre- 
sented to the General Court the first peti- 
tion for the political separation of Town 
and Village. The Court refused this, but 
granted local home rule; i.e., the Village 
might elect its own Selectmen and Con- 
stable, but must remain a part of Cam- 
bridge as regards school, bridge, and 
county expenses, and representation in the 
General Court. For some years, however, 
the plucky farmers refused to tjike ad- 
vantage of this permission, lest they for- 
feit their larger prize. 

Six years later, Edward Jackson renewed 
the fight for complete separation, which 
he was not destined to see finished. The 
new petition was signed by all but twelve 
of the villagers, and pleaded the lo^'alty 
of the Village, its pecuniary sacrifices in 
the past, its need of a local school, and the 
power of the Town dwellers to outvote 
the Village and impose undue burdens. 
"This last year," said the petition, "the 
Townsmen [Selectmen] of Cambridge have 
imposed a tax upon us, amounting to 
the sum of three country Rates, without 
our knowledge or consent," — one of sev- 
eral early protests against " taxation 
without representation." The Town again 
opposed an elaborate remonstrance, de- 
claring that the farmers were ungrateful, 
and their proposed action that of parricides. 
"Though the child may plead an interest 
in his father's estate, yet he is in God's 
account a murderer if he takes away that 
whereby his father's or mother's life should 
be preserved." The petitioners, they said, 
are either townsfolk who moved to the 
Village for room, and now complain be- 
cause they have too much of it; or persons 
who have got rich through the Town's 
advantages and now wish to shirk its 



14 



THE ^MIRROR OF NEWTON 



burdens. "We could, if need were, in- 
stance some (John Jackson's Invent., 
;^i230. Rich. Park's Invent., £972.) whose 
parents lived and died here, who, when 
they came to this town had no estate, and 
some were helped by the charity of the 
church, and others yet living that well 
know they may say truly, with good 
Jacob, — over this Jordan came I with 
this staff, — and so may they say, over this 
River went I, with this spade, hoe, or other 
tool, and now, through God's blessing, am 
greatly increased." Moreover, they ar- 
gued, Cambridge, unlike Boston or Charles- 
town, thrives not on commerce but on 
farming, and needs the pasturage on the 
south side. Lastly, they added a shrewd 
appeal to the dignity and pride of the 
Court, by pointing out that the petitioners 
"have not submitted unto nor rested in 
the Court's last grant made them for the 
choice of a Constable and three Selectmen 
among themselves, but have carried it 
frowardly." 

The Court appointed a date for a hearing 
on this petition, later postponed the hear- 
ing, and the case then disappears from the 
records of the General Court. Possibly 
the Court took advantage of the absorp- 
tion in the Indian War, then just ending, 
to avoid interference in so bitter a contest. 
At any rate, it failed to act, and while await- 
ing the Court's decision, the Villagers 
decided that their case would look better 
if they acted on the permission previously 
given. At the first local Town Meeting, 
held August 27, 1679, Thomas Prentice, 
John Ward, and James Trowbridge were 
elected Selectmen, and Thomas Green- 
wood, Constable. This was Newton's 
practical Declaration of Independence; 
the formal recognition was delayed for 
nearly a decade, during which time the 
radicals in the Village dated their corre- 
spondence, "New Cambridge." 

During this struggle occurred the first 
great Indian outbreak. In 1675 King 
Philip began a war on the whites by an 
attack on Swanzey. At an appeal from 
Plymouth, Massachusetts sent a troop of 
infantry and one of horse, the latter under 
the command of Captain Thomas Prentice. 
In twenty-four hours. Prentice had reached 
Swanzey and routed a band of Indians. 
On the next day a squad of his troopers 
dispersed another band, but in the fight 
John Druce, son of Prentice's friend and 



neighbor, Vincent Druce, was killed, — 
the first of Newton's citizens to die in the 
service of the state. After other successful 
operations, which scattered the Indians 
in that region. Prentice returned to Boston. 
In April, 1676, he learned of an Indian 
raid upon Sudbury, hastily gathered a few 
troopers, and by great exertions reached 
Sudbury in time to prevent the slaughter 
of the weak garrison, thus probably saving 
his own town from being raided. 

Cambridge Milage became wholly sep- 
arate from Cambridge Town during the 
period when the tyrannical James II. 
had abrogated the charter of Massachusetts, 
and had made Andros royal governor of 
New England. Perhaps the canny 
"farmers" foresaw that Andros and his 
Council would be less affected by past 
traditions and local sentiment than the 
General Court had been. Perhaps the 
people of Cambridge Town were afraid 
of antagonizing Andros, whose favorite, 
Randolph, had tried to secure from him a 
grant of 700 acres of the Town's lands 
near Spy Pond. Perhaps they were grate- 
ful to the "farmers," who had helped to 
prevent this. At any rate, there was no 
opposition to the petition for separation, 
and on January 11, 1688, the Governor 
and Council issued the order which made 
"Cambridge Village a distinct village and 
place of itself," the only bond being that 
both shared certain expenses connected 
with the Great Bridge across the Charles. 
In September it was agreed that the Village 
should pay to the Town on this account the 
sum of £^ in merchantable corn, in full 
for all demands "from the beginning of the 
world to the eleventh of January, 1688." 
Fifteen months after this grant, William 
of Orange was on the throne of James II., 
and Andros was a prisoner in the hands 
of a "Council of Safety" in Boston, with 
the venerable Simon Bradstreet at its head. 

The new township was born, — there 
remained the christening. For a time 
usage wavered between the old name and 
that adopted by Prentice, Ward, and the 
other "radicals." December 8, 1691, on 
petition of the citizens, the General Court 
ordered that Cambridge \'illage, sometimes 
called New Cambridge, be thenceforth 
called New Town. The change to the 
present spelling was a gradual one until 
permanentlv fixed by the uniform practice of 
Town Clerk Abraham Fuller after 1766. 



NEWTON: VILLAGE, TOWxNT, AND CITY 



15 



10. Life in the Second "New Town" 

At the time of gaining its independence, 
Newton contained 65 freemen, of whom 
25 were original settlers and 30 were sons 
of original settlers. Life in the new town- 
ship was still distinctly primitive. Wolves 
were so numerous in the waste lands that 
the Town offered a bounty for each one 
killed. February 13, 1665, Justinian Holden 
received ten shillings towards a wolf killed 
"partly in Watertown and 'partly in 
Cambridge." The boys earned pocket 
money by killing the blackbirds that ate 
up the seed-corn in planting time, and claim- 
ing the bounty of twopence per head. 
Much of the southwestern part of the 
town was Common Land, where the farm- 
ers' sheep went at liberty. The Selectmen 
annually viewed the highways and "beat 
the bounds," in English fashion. Many 
of the highways ran unfenced through 
private land, with gates at the entrance 
and exit. Houses were roomy, but un- 
adorned and plainly furnished. Open 
fireplaces were the only heaters, even in 
schoolhouses, for the next hundred years. 
At church in winter the members of the 
congregation relied upon individual foot- 
warmers and a sense of duty well performed. 
Seats in the Meeting House were assigned 
according to dignity, wealth, age, and sex, — 
the Deacons and aged men near the pulpit, 
the women in one corner, the boys in an- 
other. In 1699, the Town voted thirty 
shillings to Daniel Ray "to look after the 
meeting-house and the swine." The same 
year it voted to build its first schoolhouse, 
sixteen by fourteen feet, to be located at the 
foot of Institution Hill. In this building, 
finally built on Centre Street, John Staples, 
who had been teaching in hired quarters 
at one and a half shillings a day, became 
the first Newton public-school master. The 
vote in 1711 was a shining example for all 
later times. It instructed the committee to 
"provide a schoolmaster and agree with 
him." (The italics are the writer's.) 

A glance backward will show that the 
growth of Cambridge Village up to 1688 had 
been chiefly in the northeast and the 
southeast angles. In the former case, 
the growth was due to the intersection 
there of the Ro.xbury and the Dedham 
roads from Watertown, and the nearness 
of Watertown Mill and Weir, which insured 
a supply of three necessities, — food, lum- 



ber, and fertilizer. In the other case, the 
junction of the Dedham Road with the 
Sherburne Road, and the nearness of 
Druce's saw-mill in Brookline and Shaw's 
in Dedham, had the same effect. But 
the subdivision of the great farms farther 
west had gone on rapidly, and a few more 
pioneer families were added to Newton's 
roll. 

In 1658 John Fuller had bought Joseph 
Cook's 750 acres west of Cheesecake 
Brook, built a house and barn about where 
that brook crosses Washington Street, 
West Newton, and with his six sons began 
to develop this property. They soon 
owned practically all the land in the great 
bend of the river, from the brook round to 
Lower Falls. 

A sturdy lot, those Fullers! The father 
lived to be 78; the eldest son, John, died 
at 75; lonathan at 77; loseph (ancestor 
of our noted Abraham Fuller, of whom 
more later) at 88; loshua, instead of dying 
at 88, married at that age a 75-year-old 
bride, and clung to this earthly anchor 
till 98; leremiah gave up the fight at 85; 
the last son, Isaac, failed to outlive his 
father. 

South of the Fuller Farm were that of 
Captain Isaac Williams, a son-in-law of 
Richard Park, and that of William Robin- 
son; while Deacon John Staples and John 
Woodward were the largest holders in the 
Waban and Newton Highlands region. 
The Woodward farm is especially notable, 
because in the ancient farm-house near 
Woodward Street, dating from 1681, are 
still living the descendants in direct male 
line, in the seventh and eighth generations, 
of the first John Woodward. 

II. NEWTON .4S .\ TOWN 

II. Earliest Industries 
Throughout the seventeenth century, 
Newton remained strictly a farming com- 
munity, manufactures being discouraged 
by the restrictive laws of England. The 
turning of the century, while England was 
absorbed in a fierce struggle with France, 
was also a turning point in Newton's 
history. In 1698, John Clark of Brookline 
had bought an old Indian stone eel weir 
at the "upper falls of Charles river" and 
had built a dam with the stone and set up 
a saw-mill. The principal fall here was of 
twenty-three feet, — much too valuable for 



NEWTON: VILLAGE, TOWN, AND CITY 



17 



a mere lumber mill; so about 1708 Clark's 
sons formed a partnership with Noah 
Parker and Nathaniel Longley, and the 
four set up a grist-mill and a fulling-mill. 
This latter mill, where cloth was "fulled" 
by hammering it in a mixture of fullers' 
earth and water, was of great importance 
in a community where many families 
spun and wove much of their own cloth. 
Noah Parker later took over the whole 
business and carried it on till his death 
in 1768. Jkleanwhile at the Lower Falls 
a parallel development was taking place. 
In 1703 John Hubbard of Roxbury bought 
land there and the next year his son set up 
iron works consisting of a forge with two 
hearths and a hammer wheel. A few )-ears 
later his son-in-law, Jonathan Willard, 
moved here and took up the business of a 
smith and "bloomer." 

With these industries once established, 
the west end began a slow but steady de- 
velopment, while the central strip re- 
mained undeveloped and very sparsely 
settled. There had been a grist-mill, to 
be sure, since 1664, on Smelt Brook near 
the outlet to BuUough's Pond, the flow of 
which was so small that for many years it 
was increased by bringing additional water 
from Crystal Lake by an artificial channel 
leading down through the Newton Centre 
Playground. A proposition having been 
made in 17 14 to move the Meeting House 
nearer the centre of the town, a committee 
reported that "the inhabitance of the said 
Towne having dewly considered ye center 
of the Towne, the incommodiousness of the 
place whear it is . . . and the inconveniances 
of highways . . . we do judge it best to 
continue the meetinghouse where it now 
stands." 

A new impetus was given to manufactur- 
ing during the Revolutionary War, when 
importation was practically impossible. 
Noah Parker's mills had been idle- for ten 
years after his death, when in 1778, after 
the capture of Burgoyne and the resulting 
alliance with France had given the colo- 
nists hopes of winning their independence, 
they were purchased for £1700, by Simon 
Elliott of Boston, who gradually de\'el- 
oped an extensive business, including four 
snuff-mills with twenty mortars, a grist- 
mill, a screw-mill, a wire-mill, and an an- 
nealing shop. It is for Samuel Elliott, not 
John Eliot, that the street and station in 
Upper FaUs are named, although the latter 



seems to have been affected b}- the craze 
for the "reformed spelling." There was 
another smaller fall a half-mile farther 
down the river, where, opposite an island, 
Noah Parker's administrator had built 
a saw-mill. This was purchased bv a 
scythe-maker named Bixby, and in 1799 
was sold to the "Newton Iron Works Co." 
which erected a nail factory there. At the 
Lower Falls, too, a new industry had been 
started by John Ware, brother of a pro- 
fessor in Harvard College, who built a 
paper-mill in 1789. 

This was not the first paper-mill in New- 
ton, however. That industry was started 
by David Bemis of Watertown, who joined 
forces with Dr. Enos Sumner, owner of the 
land on the Newton side, in building a dam 
across the river. His first enterprise was a 
paper-mill, every sheet being made by 
hand, by repeatedly dipping it in the pulp 
and drying it. As the business gradually 
developed, machinery was brought from 
Europe, a grist and snufl" mill was added, 
a chocolate, drug, and dye-wood mill was 
built on the Watertown side of the river, 
and a new village of "Bemis" was added 
to Newton's list. 

12. The War for Indcpcwicmc 
But before we trace the development 
of industries beyond the end of the centurv, 
we must pause to examine Newton's share 
in the Revolutionary War. Her record 
in this war is a proud one. \\'iin(.'s-- her 
instructions in Town Meetin'.i a.- carl) as 
1765 to Abraham Fuller, who left his home 
under the Old Elrtis to sit in the General 
Court as Newton's Representative through- 
out this trying period. He was to use 
his best endeavors "to have the inalien- 
able rights of the people of this Province 
asserted and vindicated, and left on public 
record; that posterity may never have rea- 
son to charge those of the present times, 
with the guilt of tamely giving them away." 
The colonial records contain no more spir- 
ited message to future generations. 

Furthermore, Newton urged lawful 
measures, not lawlessness, — the boycott, 
not the riot. Rather than buy of England, 
her men gave up imported hats and gold 
buttons, snuff and watches, malt liquor 
and cheese; while the women renounced 
thread lace and diamonds, gauze and vel- 
vets, fur tippets and stays. A queer, and a 
significant, list! but these with other arti- 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON 



cles were tabooed by a vote in town meet- 
ing, while the purchase or use of TEA, di- 
rectly or indirectly, was forsworn. Per- 
haps the most striking act of the town was 
her anticipation by public vote of the 
Declaration of Independence. In a Town 
Meeting presided over by John Woodward 
as Moderator, on the first anniversary of 
the battle of Bunker Hill, June 17, 1776, 
the freemen iiiianimoitsly voted "Thai in 
case the Hon. Continental Congress should, 
for the safety 0/ the American Colonies, 
declare them independent oj the Kingdom 
oj Great Britain, . . . the inhabitants of this 
Town mill solemnly engage with their lives 
and fortunes, to support them in the meas- 
ures." 

As war became inevitable, the Town 
raised a company of Minute !Men under 
Captain Phineas Cook; furnished arms 
gratis to the poorer citizens; acquired by 
gift two field pieces and a training field; 
drilled its two companies of regular militia, 
commanded by Captains Amariah Fuller 
and Jeremiah Wiswall; and sent all its 
soldiers, numbering 218 men, to the battle 
of Lexington. Among the Newton men 
who marched twenty-eight miles that day 
were Noah Wiswall, 76 years old, and 
Joshua Fuller, 72 years old. Newton 
soldiers fought at the Siege of Boston, 
at Bunker Hill, in the Canadian e.xpedi- 
tion from New York, in the campaign 
against New York. To sustain its sol- 
diers, the Town voted bounties and re- 
mitted taxes to regulars and irregulars 
alike. It buried itself under a mountain 
of debt, beginning with appropriations of 
a few hundred pounds, and rising, as the 
currency depreciated, to a single vote of 
;^ 1 00 ,000. 

13. Experiences of Some Newton Soldiers 

[The following account of the battle of Concord 
and Lexington, and the subsequent record of the 
regiment from Newton, which took part in that 
battle, and in other engagements during the War 
of the Revolution, was written by Hon. William 
Jackson of Newton, and taken down by him, 
from the lips of his father Major Timothy Jack- 
son, who was a member of the regiment, and who 
ser\'ed throughout the war and endured some of 
the hardest e.xperiences of war. He was taken 
prisoner several times, and, once, while in cap- 
tivity in New York state, was thrown into a cell, 
where a man lay dead from small-po.x. He con- 
tracted the disease and was left to fight it out by 
himself, with no care and scarcely food enough to 
sustain life; but, owing to his vigorous constitu- 
tion, he recovered his health, under these unfavor- 



able circumstances, and lived to serve his country 
in various battles; having been released in an e.x- 
change of prisoners of war, and making his way 
home, on foot, to the Jackson Homestead at New- 
ton. This account is reproduced here through the 
courtesy of Miss Annie Jackson of Mill Street, 
Newtonville.] 

"Before daybreak, on the memorable 
nineteenth of April, 1775, Timothy was 
out with his horse and his panniers on his 
way to Watertown; when about half-way, 
he heard the alarm guns, took it for granted 
the British were out, threw off his panniers, 
and rode around the town as fast as pos- 
sible to warn the company, of which he was 
Corporal, to appear upon the parade-ground, 
where most of the non-commissioned offi- 
cers and privates assembled before sun- 
rise. This parade-ground was near the 
meeting-house, but neither captain, lieu- 
tenant or ensign was present; a company, 
however, was formed under command of 
an orderly-sergeant, marched to the house 
of their captain. Cook, which was near 
the house where Mr. Brackett's house now 
is; he, being sick, declined joining them, 
whereupon they immediately proceeded 
to the choice of a new captain, and elected 
Michael Jackson, second cousin of Tim- 
othy. He had served as lieutenant in the 
French wars, and was, at that time, a vol- 
untary private in the company. Being a 
man of courage and decision, with consid- 
erable military experience, he, forthwith, 
placed himself at the head of the company; 
and, without a word of ceremony, ordered 
them ' to right about face, forward — march, 
quick step,' and, very soon, they arrived 
at Watertown meeting-house, where, it 
had previously been determined, should 
be the rendezvous of the company in case 
of alarm. 

" On their arrival there, the\' found the 
field officers and captains were in the 
schoolhouse, holding a council as to the 
best course to pursue. Captain Michael 
could not remain long silent spectator 
among them. With his usual blunt and 
fearless independence, he, as soon as he 
could get the floor, told them that it was 
a well-known fact that the British had taken 
the Concord and Lexington road, doubtless 
for the purpose of destroying the military 
stores at the latter place; and that it was 
their duty to stop talking, and begin march- 
ing in that direction, and that another mo- 
ment ought not to be lost in useless dis- 
cussion. This pro-tem. captain told the 



NEWTON: VILLAGE, TOWN, AND CITY 



19 



field officers to their faces, that he suspected 
that their doubts as to what they should 
do, proceeded from their fear to meet the 
enemy: and that they were wasting time 
to avoid them. 

" Forthwith, he left the council, placed 
himself at the head of his company, and 
took up his line of march for Lexington; 
for he longed to get a shot at them. His 
blunt speech and prompt action broke up 
the council, without any agreement as to 
a concert of action. Some of the com- 
panies remained where they were, some 
dispersed, and others followed Jackson's 
lead. His company came in contact with 
the British near Concord village and were 
dispersed after exchanging one or two 
shots; but rallied again in a wood near-by, 
and, joined by a part of the Watertown 
Company, hung upon the enemy's rear 
with much effect, until they reached 
Charlestown at night. In the after part of 
that memorable day, as I was informed by 
Major Daniel Jackson, who was one of the 
W'atertown Company, they threw them- 
selves into the vard of Parson Cook, min- 
ister of Menotomy, now ^^'est Cambridge. 
This brought them within gunshot of a 
Company of British soldiers, who had made 
a halt on the Common. From behind a 
board fence, a sharp fire was kept up, until 
the British recommenced their retreat, 
leaving twelve of their number dead or 
wounded: here, one of the Watertown 
Company was killed; eight were killed or 
wounded during the day. At the close 
of the day, and after the contest had ceased, 
this company with their captain received 
the public thanks of their commanding 
officer General Warren, for the energy 
and bravery displayed by them during 
the contest. Shortly after, Michael Jack- 
son received a Major's commission in 
the Continental Army; and, subsequently, 
was promoted to the command of a regi- 
ment in the Massachusetts line, than which 
none was more distinguished for bravery 
and good conduct during the war. The 
late Gov. Brooks was lieutenant-colonel 
and William Hull, major, in this regiment. 
Jackson received a severe wound in the 
thigh, during the engagement of this regi- 
ment in Staten Island, near New York. 
During the sanguinary contest which pre- 
ceded and continued during the war, until 
the surrender of Burgoyne, Colonel Jackson 
was disabled and confined by this wound, 



from which he ne\er entirel}' recovered. 
In these battles, his regiment was com- 
manded by Lieut. Colonel Brooks, since 
Governor of Massachusetts, and Major 
William Hull, since Governor of Michigan. 
In the hard fought battle of the 19th of 
September, which decided the fate of 
Burgoyne's Army, this was the only regi- 
ment that succeeded in driving the Brit- 
ish regiments from their entrenchments. 
They, that nii^ht, >k-]>l nn the ground oc- 
cupied by their ciieni\ the [ircxicius night, 
and which they had wiv^lrd fmm them. 
About one half this rtijimcnl was either 
killed or wounded in thi> li,;iiie. 

"When the battle of Hunker Hill com- 
menced, Major Timothy Jackson was at 
home, at the Jackson Homestead, and saw 
from the hill opposite his house (Mt. Ida) 
Charlestown in flames. He proceeded, 
forthwith, to the scene of action, which was 
about 8 miles distant, and arrived there 
just as the Americans were retreating from 
the hill. Soon after the battle of Bunker 
Hill, a company of infantry was enlisted 
in Newton, for eight months, under the 
command of Nathan Fuller, and marched 
to camp at Cambridge, where they stayed 
until the British evacuated Boston." 

14. First Division of the Church 
During the War for Independence, came 
the division of the town into two parishes. 
Being far from the first Meeting House, 
and with no very direct highways to it, 
the residents of Fuller's Corner had long 
before begun to hold local religious ser- 
vices, economizing by having the clergy- 
man also serve as school-teacher. After 
eighteen years they built a Meeting House, 
and applied for separate incorporation and 
a division of the old Communion Service. 
The First Church granted them four pewter 
tankards and one pewter dish! Their 
first pastor, the Rev. William Greenough, 
was ordained in 1781, but the church was 
not incorporated till five years later. The 
conditions of membership in the Second 
Church were extremely liberal. The candi- 
date must "make a public confession of 
religion and dedication of himself to God" 
— nothing more! Yet in the fight against 
Unitarianism which soon raged in Massa- 
chusetts, Mr. Greenough ranged himself 
stoutly on the side of the traditional ortho- 
doxy. An idea of the population of the 
town may be gained from the fact that 



NEWTON: VILLAGE, TOWN, AND CITY 



21 



this new parish (all west of a line from the 
angle of the Watertown reservation to the 
Upper Falls) contained about 60 families. 
The same period saw the rise of a new- 
sect in the opposite part of the town. 
Certain members of out-of-town Baptist 
Churches had long sought relief from 
church rates within the Town, and in 
1780 was founded the First Baptist Church, 
largely through the efforts of Mr. Elhanan 
Winchester. The location of their first 
Meeting House on the shore of Wiswall's 
Pond, in 1786, gave it the "Christian name " 
of Baptist Pond. This church was as 
strict as the first church was liberal; and, 
like that church, had an early struggle 
with a new sect,— the Universalists. 

15. The "Critical Period" 

Modern historians are agreed that the 
period from the close of the Revolutionary 
War to the adoption of the Constitution 
was a far more critical period than that 
of the war itself; that is, that there was 
a much greater danger of the failure of the 
right, and of permanent injury to the 
American people. The masses, having 
paid dearly for liberty, were afraid to 
create a strong government. Business 
was demoralized by the war, and the 
"rag money" craze had infected Congress, 
state legislatures, and town governments. 
Attempts to collect debts from impover- 
ished debtors by process of law had made 
the courts appear to be instruments of 
tyranny. In Shays's Rebellion, hundreds 
of Revolutionary soldiers turned weapons 
against the state they had created, in an 
attempt to prevent the collection of debts 
and to force Massachusetts to issue paper 
money. 

The sanity of the citizens of Newton in 
this crisis was very striking, and was ex- 
hibited in a remarkable manner. In May, 
1786, the Town instructed its Representa- 
tive Abraham Fuller, to work for (i) 
"a revision of the laws reducing their 
bulk, expressing them in the most plain 
and easy terms, and rendering them agree- 
able to our republican government," and 
(2) a S3'stem of courts, with jurors, and 
rights of appeal, to the end that citizens 
may "obtain justice, freely, without being 
obliged to purchase it, completely and 
without anv denial, promptlv and without 
delay." 



"With great regret," they went on, "we 
receive the idea of a paper currency being 
established; having long and often ob- 
served and felt the natural evil tendency 
of it to the ruin of many people, — widows 
and orphans especially; that we cannot 
but heartily deprecate it." 

"We think it would answer a salutary 
purpose that the yeas and nays in the 
Honorable House of Representatives, on 
every important transaction, might be 
published." . . . 

"Further, that you use your influence 
to prevent the importation and consump- 
tion of many articles of luxury among us, 
which we view as a very great grievance." 

Intelligible laws, prompt justice, orderly 
procedure, sound money, responsibility of 
public servants through publicity, selj- 
restraini of the wealthy in times oj general 
distress. — One wonders from what text- 
book these farmers learned statesmanship! 
Every history class in Newton's schools 
might well be required to study this docu- 
ment, as an epitome of sound economics and 
civics. 

16. Industries and the War 0} 1S12 

The independence of the United States 
led to the rapid development of its home 
industries, especially after its foreign trade 
was killed in the death struggle between 
France and Great Britain that began in 
1803. Eli WTiitney had taught us how to 
prepare cotton fibre by machinery at the 
very time when Samuel Slater gave to 
New England the secrets of the British 
power spinning and weaving machines. 
From 1805 to 1807 both Great Britain and 
France passed acts hostile to American 
foreign commerce, and in the latter year 
our own Embargo Act forced American 
capital to seek investment in home manu- 
factures. Water power was eagerly util- 
ized, and the falls of the Charles were not 
overlooked. Of the two industries at the 
Upper Falls, one, the Elliott Mills, was 
taken over by James and Thomas Perkins, 
at a cost of $20,000, and some of the plant 
was utilized for cotton spinning. The 
Newton Iron Works Company, at the 
second fall, continued their nail business, 
shipping large quantities to the South for 
making sugar boxes, and added a cotton- 
mill on the Needham side of the river in 
1813. The Upper Falls Village had now 



22 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON 



become so important that the Worcester 
Turnpike was built to that point, and a 
bridge was built close to the Newton Facto- 
ries Company's Mills in 1808. The demand 
for power exceeded the supply, and New- 
ton went to the Legislature to complain 
that Dedham had been robbing her of 
water by means of a canal which had been 
dug from the Charles to a brook flowing 
into the Neponset River a hundred and 
sixty-eight years before. The Legislature 



school for boys at West Newton; the 
founding of a "Social Library" in the 
West Parish, and of St. David's Musical 
Society at Newton Corner; the founding 
of a Savings Bank in connection with a 
Temperance Society; and the building of 
many new roads. Travel was still by 
stage-coach, and therefore dependent on 
inns. Thirty stages rattled through "New- 
ton daily, carrying passengers to Boston 
from Worcester and points beyond. The 




forbade Dedham to draw off more than 
one-third of the total flow of the river. 
Near the end of the W'ar of 1812, the com- 
pany at the first fall — now become the 
Elliott Manufacturing Company — began 
manufacturing cotton sheeting, the hours 
of labor then being from five in the morn- 
ing to seven at night with half an hour for 
breakfast and three-quarters of an hour 
for dinner. Soon the company was mak- 
ing its own thread, running six thousand 
spindles, and was also making its own 
machinery for spinning and weaving. 

The civic hfe of the town expanded 
with its industries. The early part of the 
century saw the entrance into Newton of 
a third religious body, in the Episcopal 
Church at the Lower Falls; the estab- 
lishment of a "Ladies' Academy" at 
".\ngier's Corner" (Newton), a "Female 
Academv" at Newton Centre, and a private 



Worcester Turnpike brought prosperity to 
the "Manufacturer's Hotel," at the junc- 
tion of Chestnut and Beacon Streets. An- 
other prosperous tavern wr.s White's, near 
the corner of Washington and Cherry 
Streets, West Newton, and a third — the 
oldest in the town — did a flourishing busi- 
ness in Nonantum Square. The destruc- 
tion of the coasting trade by Jefferson's 
"Embargo," and later by the war, caused 
a development of overland traffic. Dur- 
ing the war a constant stream of great 
wagons, called "Madison's Ships," passed 
through Newton, bringing flour, hogs, 
butter and cheese, apples, and cider from 
the Berkshire and Genesee country, and 
carrying back from Boston tape, needles, 
calico, molasses, and rum. 

Meanwhile the war had brought new 
opportunities to the Bemis brothers, who 
foresaw a large demand for cotton goods. 



NEWTON: VILLAGE, TOWN, AND CITY 



23 



and set to work to supply it. Utilizing 
their own mills for spinning the warp, they 
began to manufacture ticking, bagging, 
and sheetings, using hand looms operated 
by weavers from England. Soon they 
began making cotton duck for sail cloth, 
and the first ship to use American sail 
cloth was equipped from these mills. In 
1816, power looms were substituted for 
hand looms, at once reducing the cost from 
fourteen cents to less than one cent a yard. 



when war became certain, Madison made 
him Brigadier General in command of the 
Northwestern army. Hull, who had 
accepted under protest, with great energy 
hurried his scanty force of 1800 soldiers 
200 miles through an unbroken wilderness, 
pathless, bridgeless, and uninhabited, ta 
Detroit. He had already told the Gov- 
ernment at Washington that the post 
could not be held without a naval force on 
Lake Erie, and a guarded line of land 




HULL .MANSIOX 



The Bemis factories have the honor of 
being the first buildings in the United 
States to be lighted by gas, the equipment 
for which was installed by Seth Davis of 
Newton in 1812. By 1814 the service 
pipes, made of tin, were rusted out, and 
the experiment was discontinued. 

17. General William Hull 
The mention of the War of 18 12 recalls 
the name of Newton's most celebrated 
citizen. General William Hull, who had 
been associated with Abraham Fuller at 
the siege of Boston and with Major 
Michael Jackson in the Burgoyne Cam- 
paign, had married Abraham Fuller's 
daughter Sarah in 1781, and had settled in 
Newton as a lawyer some years later. In 
1805 Jefferson made him the first Gov- 
ernor of the Territorv of Michigan, and 



communications. Through their bung- 
ling, papers betraying his plans and his 
weakness fell into the hands of the Brit- 
ish, who promptly attacked him by land 
and water, aided by Tecumseh with 700 
Indians. His communications were cut 
off. .Ammunition ran low. Hull seemed 
to lose his nerve, and failed to strike hard 
when in striking hard lay all chance of 
success, or to retreat while retreat was 
possible. Finally, to avoid the horrors of 
an Indian massacre of garrison and citi- 
zens, he surrendered without battle. 

While Hull was a prisoner at Montreal, 
his oldest son. Captain Abraham Fuller 
Hull, was killed in battle, and his nephew. 
Commodore Isaac Hull, was winning 
glory in the frigate Constitution. After 
the war, Hull was sentenced to be shot by 
a court-martial for cowardice and conduct 



24 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON 



unbecoming to an officer, but was par- 
doned by the President. He returned to 
Newton, residing thenceforth in the Fuller 
homestead, under the Old Elms, and set 
to work to vindicate his reputation. It 
is now known that the Government was 
chiefly to blame for Hull's disaster; that 
General Dearborn, President of the Court 
Martial, had failed to give proper support 
during the campaign; that Colonel Cass, 
the chief witness, had demoralized Hull's 
army by intrigues and criticisms of his 
commander. Hull's sole failings were 
over-caution at first, and indecision at last. 
INone but a Napoleon, and perhaps not 
even he, could have wrested victory from 
defeat under such conditions; and Hull 
showed a far higher courage in saving the 
garrison and inhabitants from wholesale 
massacre by surrendering while the Indians 
were still under the control of the British, 
than if he had died leading a desperate 
and hopeless assault. 

i8. Industries, 1825 to 1845 

In 1825 the last of the snuff mills at 
Upper Falls was made into a cotton factory, 
and the same year Hurd and Crehore started 
a new industry at the Lower Falls, which 
had already grown from about fifty to 
about five hundred inhabitants in a quarter 
century. The Crehore mill, which has 
remained in the family ever since, has been 
a large producer of press paper, and also 
manufactures cards for Jacquard looms. 
In 1825, also, a sulphuric acid factory was 
started in the region afterwards set off to 
Waltham, giving its name to the so-called 
Chemical Station on the Fitchburg Railroad. 
Farther down the river, Seth Bemis had done 
a double stroke of business. The great fac- 
tories recently established in Waltham by 
the Boston Manufacturing Company — one 
of the founders of which, by the way, 
was Patrick Tracey Jackson, a descendant 
of Newton's Edward Jackson — found their 
fall reduced by the flooding back of the 
water from the Bemis dam. Seth Bemis 
bought all the rights of his partners, forced 
the Waltham Company to pay him twelve 
thousand dollars for lowering his dam 
twelve inches, and then resold the property 
to the Bemis Manufacturing Company. 

In 1832, Mr. Otis Pettee, mechanician 
for the Elliott Manufacturing Company, 
began business at the Upper Falls as a 



manufacturer of cotton-mill machinery, and 
eight years later, when Lawrence and 
Lowell were flooding the market with 
cottons from their enormous factories, 
he purchased the plant of his former 
employers. The Pettee machinery found 
a sale all over the United States, and was 
used in large quantities in Mexico. In the 
Lower Falls the Curtis Mill was added 
about 1834, and the Thomas Rice Com- 
pany was doing a large paper manufactur- 
ing business on the Needham side. Of 
some curious interest, although transient 
in character, were the candle factory of 
William Jackson, the chocolate factory, 
the calico printing works, and the laundry, 
all located on Smelt Brook (thenceforth 
"Laundry Brook") in the vicinity of the 
present Jiickson Road and the neighbor- 
ing church. 

19. Ceiitrijugal Forces, 183 2-1847 

The power loom made Newton a manu- 
facturing town; the steam locomotive 
made her a garden of suburban homes. 
The first railroad in the United States was 
chartered in 1823. The State Commission 
to consider a route for the Boston & 
Albany Railroad was appointed in 1827. 
The plans for the Boston & \\'orcester 
Railroad, as the first section was called, 
provided for a route along the old stage 
road through Watertown, Waltham, and 
Weston; but their citizens making some 
protest, Hon. William Jackson of Newton 
induced the directors to build their line 
south of the river. On April 7, 1834, the 
first train whizzed (or wheezed) up to the 
"terminal station" at Angler's Comer, 
bearing the president and 50 guests. The 
locomotive was one of George Stephen- 
son's, "small in stature but symmetrical 
in every respect, and finished with the 
e.xactness of a chronometer," imported 
from England, and it justified its name 
of the Meteor by making the return trip 
to Boston in thirty-three minutes of actual 
running time. On the next trip it estab- 
lished a safer precedent for future years, 
breaking down at various points between 
Boston and Newton, and getting its 130 
passengers back to Boston just at sunset. 
The regular service began on April 16, 
with three round trips daily, at a fare of 
seventy-five cents. 

Ten years later, in 1844, a building 



NEWTON: VILLAGE, TOWN, AND CITY 



for the storage of grain from the mill at 
Bullough's Pond was erected at the rail- 
road crossing a mile from the "Corner," 
whence arose the flag station at "Hull's 
Crossing" (now Newtonville Station). 
William Jackson reaped the fruits of his 
public spirit, for in 1846 he sold land in 
Waban JPark, Newton, by the joot, the first 
transaction of the sort in the town. The 
same year, a station was located in the new 
hamlet of Auburndale, which was being 
developed by a land company, — the first 
of its kind in Newton. In 1852, the 
south side got railroad connections with 
Boston, through the energy of the pastor 
of the First Church, Rev. Mr. Bushnell, 
and of Otis IVttce .if Newton Upper Falls. 
Mr. Pettee was the first president of the 
new Charles River Railroad through 
Brookline and Newton to Needham. With 
the extension of the line the name became 
successively the Hartford & Erie, and 
the New 'York & New England "Air 
Line." Finally, when the Boston & 
Albany built its branch line from River- 
side to Newton Highlands, in 1886, the 
portion of the "Air Line" from that point 
eastward to Brookline was purchased to 
complete the "Circuit." 

River and railroads combined to make 
Newton grow, like a tree, at the circum- 
ference. The centre remained open and 
poorly provided with roads. The result 
was a long contest, first to change the 
location of Town Meetings, and later to 
divide the town. The match was lighted 
by the refusal of the proprietors of the 
First Church to allow their building to be 
used for Town Meetings, although it had 
been so used for many years. Where 
should a Town House be built? Near 
the old church ? The thousand residents 
of the Falls districts objected to travelling 
four miles or more. Near the Second 
Church? The farmers of the Oak Hill 
region protested. In the centre ? A round- 
about route for every one except General 
Hull. Town Meetings were held in differ- 
ent meeting-houses alternately, and even 
in the horse-sheds, in an attempt to "put 
this troublesome question where it would 
stay put." As the contest grew hotter, 
meetings were held every few weeks. On 
one occasion the West Parish voters all 
stayed away, and the farmers unanimously 
chose a site on the Common in Newton 
Centre. The timber for the building 



was rushed to the lot in twenty-four hours, 
and only a "Providential" storm prevented 
its erection before another meeting, packed 
with West end voters, could veto it. "High 
Heaven," said Seth Davis, "frowned on 
the undertaking." 

Both parties forgot that the diiBculty 
was one due to natural causes which time 
would surely remove. Angry at alleged 
detraction and unfairness, the West end 
demanded a division of the town along the 
old parish line, and Newton finally paid 
for her selfish sectionalism by the loss of 
valuable territory. First the people of 
Lower Falls tried to get annexed to Need- 
ham or Weston, but failed. In 1838 (the 
150th anniversary of the town's incorpora- 
tion) the residents in the Brook Farm region 
had their 1800 acres transferred to Rox- 
bury; and in 1849, 640 acres in the north- 
west corner were annexed to Waltham, 
where the new Fitchburg Railroad was 
helping to build up industries. But for this 
event, millions of watch-pockets throughout 
the United States would to-day be weighted 
down with "Newton watches." 

These losses weakened the army of 
secession; a conversion of the Falls resi- 
dents to union spiked its guns; in 1849, 
the old meeting-house of the Second 
Church was purchased by the Town f'-r 
$1800 and made over into a Town Hm.se, 
and a few years later it was voted that 
"the inhabitants of Newton will oppose 
any and all measures for the division of 
the town; and that Lhey will regard with 
disfavor the disturbance of their peace and 
harmony by the farther agitation of the 
subject." 

Up to 1825 there were but three re- 
ligious sects in Newton, but with rapid 
increase in population came religious di- 
versity. The second quarter century saw 
the rise of Methodist, Unitarian, Roman 
Catholic, Universalist, and New Church 
societies, the detailed history of which will 
be found on later pages. 

20. Centripetal Forces, 1849-1873 
The third quarter of the nineteenth cen- 
tury was one of evolution as well as ex- 
pansion, in which the town showed signs 
of a growing social life as one community 
instead of half a dozen. Thitherto, the 
burying-places had been small, remote 
from one another, and associated with 
specific church parishes. It was a dis- 



26 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON 



tinct step towards unit}- when the peoi^le 
of all sections found a common resting 
place for their dead, through the action of 
the Newton Cemetery Association, which 
in 185s purchased 100 acres of land in the 
heart of the town, a portion of the original 




MAP OF NEWTOX IN lS4!i 

Bradstreet grant. This cemetery, con- 
secrated in 1657, has since been enlarged, 
and made more beautiful from time to 
time by shrubbery and flowers, and by a 
mortuary chapel and a Gothic gateway. 

As has been said, the political life of the 
town had been centred at West Newton 
in 1849. I" 1859, its educational life 
became centred at Newtonville through 
the location of the first high school build- 
ing on the old Hull estate. In i860 the lit- 



erary life was centred at Newton, through 
the purchase of a lot there for the future 
public library. Macadamized roads, street 
lamps under charge of the town, all-night 
police, evening schools, an organized school 
system directed by a Superintendent, meas- 

ures looking towards the 

creation of public play- 
grounds and a municipal 
water system, — these were 
the achievements of the 
decade from 1863 to 1873 
which showed that the vil- 
lages were ready for a com- 
mon life, that the town was 
ripe for city-hood, if vigor- 
ous life and not mere nufti- 
bers were to be the cri- 
terion. 

But the growth of pop- 
ulation is equally significant. 
Hull's Crossing had grown 
into Newtonville. West 
Newton had gained through 
the presence there of im- 
\y"^ [xirtant educational insti- 

'f^Pi tutions. Aubumdale, given 

^ \ It-, first start by William 

J ckson's land company, 
h. d become a spirited rival 
lit the other newer hamlets. 
The Newton Centre Trans- 
planting Association and 
the Crystal Lake Associ- 
ation were attracting settlers 
by their work in beautify- 
ing their village. In 1866 the 
farmers farther south and 
west induced the Air Line 
to establish a new station, 
which appears to have had 
more than its share of "ups 
and downs"; for it tegan 
as Oak Hill, then became 
Newton Dale, and ended 
as Newton Highlands. 
In the middle of the century Newton 
was notable among Massachusetts towns 
for the number of notable persons living 
here, attracted by the beauty of the sev- 
eral villages, their excellent private schools, 
and their advantageous location near 
Boston. Indeed Newton's restful charm 
drew many transient residents here, even 
before the railroad made Boston so easily 
accessible. Among the literary person- 
ages who have found rest and inspiration 



NEWTON: VILLAGE, TOWN, AND CITY 



27 



here are the two writers who, of all that 
New England has produced, have the best 
claim to the title of "Genius," Emerson 
and Hawthorne. To a farm-house on 
\^'oodward Street, Newton Highlands, Em- 
erson came with his mother on his return 
from Europe in 1833, and found its se- 
clusion an aid to meditation. "It is calm 
as eternity," he writes; "times and sea- 
sons get lost here." Hawthorne spent a 
winter in West Newton just before taking 
up his permanent residence at the "Way- 
side" in Concord, — drawn here bv the 



as everywhere in the North, the Civil War 
drew men together in a common bond 
of sympathy, of resentment tow-ards the 
enemies of the country, of determination 
to save the Union. The patriotism of 
her citizens was as prompt and intense as 
during the War for Independence. Lin- 
coln's first call for volunteers was on 
April 15, 1861. The call for a town meet- 
ing to act upon it was issued on the nine- 
teenth — Lexington Day. The first ap- 
propriation, made by a population of 
8975 people, was $20,000, and the Town 




)F THE XEWTOX CEMETERY 



presence of Mrs. Hawthorne's relatives, 
the Peabodys and the Manns. Here, 
in the home of either his father-in-law or 
his brother-in-law (nobody knows where, 
says his latest biographer), he wrote The 
Blithedale Romance, the scene of which is 
laid in the opposite corner of the original 
Newton, at Brook Farm. In West 
Newton, too, lived Lydia Maria Child; 
in Auburndale, Louise Imogen Guiney; 
in Newtonville, Celia Thaxter and James 
Jeffrey Roche; and in Newton, Clara 
Louise Burnham. 

21. Newton in the Civil War 
The bombardment of Fort Sumter 
startled Newton from her peaceful calm 
into immediate and intense activity. Here 



at the same timepledged itself to pay vol- 
unteers twenty dollars a month in addition 
to their regular pay, to care for their fam- 
ilies if necessary, "providing for them all 
the needed and necessary comforts of life," 
and to give suitable burial to those who 
died in the service. "Resolved," so ran 
the resolution passed at this meeting, — ■ 
"that the people of this town have the most 
perfect confidence and trust in our present 
form of Government, that we have faith 
in the wisdom and patriotism of its framers, 
and that, without distinction of party or 
party lines, in our heart of hearts we re- 
vere and love their virtues and their mem- 
ories. The cause of this Union is our 
cause, and to its support with a firm re- 
liance on the protection of Divine Provi- 



28 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON 



dence, we pledge our lives, our fortunes, 
and our sacred honor." Committees were 
appointed to obtain arms, uniforms, and 
clothing, and the women of Newton volun- 
teered to make up all the undergarments 
needed for the military company. 

One act of good citizenship deserves 
special mention. During the stress of the 
conflict, when the country's needs made 
any delay harmful, Messrs. J. Wiley 
Edmands, E. P. Bancroft, John S. Farlow, 
Gardner Colbv, C. C. and I. T. Burr, 
G. C. and C. H. Lord, and William Clafiin 
executed a guarantee bond for $7000 to 
enable the Selectmen and Town Treasurer 
to fill up the town's quota of recruits 
in advance of any call that might be made 
by the President and in advance of the 
appropriation of the necessary money by 
the Town. 

The total amount appropriated by the 
Town for war purposes during the four 
years of its continuance was $113,000, 
although but $92,621 were expended. 
There were 11 29 Newton soldiers — more 
than her legal quota — in the regular land 
forces of the United States, distributed 
among 30 regiments. She also furnished 
many men to the navy. Her roll of honor 
contains the names of 38 commissioned 
officers. Newton blood was shed on 75 
battlefields, from Bull Run to Peters- 
burg. So far as is known, Newton was 
the first town in Massachusetts to erect 
a soldiers' monument. On this shaft, 
erected in 1863, and dedicated to the 59 
Newton soldiers who fell in battle, are 
found, among many notable names of 
later comers, four that are graved on the 
monument to Newton's first settlers and 
repeated on nearly every page of her 
history, — Jackson, Ward, Parker, and 
Trowbridge. The land for this monu- 
ment was given by the Town. The ex- 
pense for the shaft and its setting was 
borne by private subscription. There were 
several gifts of large sums, 1200 citizens 
paid one dollar each, and iioo school 
children gave their dimes. The per- 
petual care of the grounds was assumed 
by the Cemetery Association. 

22. Incorporation of the Citv 0} Newton, 
1873-74 
The last Town Meetings in Newton 
were held on April 7, Octolser 13, and 



November 4, 1873. At the first of these, 
the subject of a change in the form of gov- 
ernment was debated. The other half of 
the original Cambridge Village (which had 
become the town of Brighton in 1807) 
was to be annexed to Boston on the first 
day of the following year, and a few Newton 
citizens recommended the same course for 
her. Others urged that no change be 
made. Mr. J. F. C. Hyde led the forces 
favorable to the change to city government, 
and finally secured the appointment of a 
committee to petition the Legislature for 
a charter. At the second meeting the 
proposed "Act to establish the City of 
Newton" {Acts and Resolves, ch. 326) was 
accepted by a vote of 1224 to 391. At 
the third and final meeting, the annual 
state election was held, and the Town 
Clerk made a final entry in the Town 
Records: — ■ 

"The Town Meeting held November 4, 

1873, above recorded was the last Town 

Meeting held in the Town of Newton. 

Newton becomes a City January 5, 1874. 

" Marsh.\ll S. Rice, 

" Town Clerk of the Town of Newton." 

The election for City officers was held 
on the first Tuesday in December follow- 
ing, according to law. 

As a city Newton retained, with appro- 
priate additions to the inscriptions, the 
seal which had first appeared on the An- 
nual Report of the town's officers in 1865. 
The designers of the seal had chosen a 
most appropriate symbol for the munici- 
pality, — the scene on Nonantum Hill 
where the Rev. John Eliot taught the 
Indians, not only the Christian religion, 
but also the Christian methods of civilized 
life in towns. "We exhorted them to fence 
their ground, with ditches and stone walls 
upon the banks," he writes, "and prom- 
ised to help them with shovels, spades, 
mattocks, crows of iron." When the Gen- 
eral Court in 1646 appointed a committee 
to buy land for Waban's tribe on Nonan- 
tum Hill of Mr. Sparhawk, that they might 
have in undisputed ownership lands on 
which they might build a town and "live 
in an orderly way amongst us," the Indians 
"desired to know what name this town 
should have, and it was told them it should 
be called 'Noonatomen,' which signifies 
in English, 'rejoicing,' because they, hear- 
ing the Word and seeking to know God, 



NEWTON: VILLAGE, TOWN, AND CITY 



29 



the English did rejoice at it." The word 
"Nonantum" on the city seal thus pro- 
claims to the world that the city — like that 
first township within its bounds — "re- 
joices" in the blessings of a Christian 
community. 

By a misinterpretation of the records, 
the date of the first election of local ofii- 
cers, 1679, was placed upon the original 
seal as the date of its incorporation as a 
town; and it was only after the discovery 
of fresh documentary evidence by Mr. L. R. 
Paige of Cambridge that the true date, 
1688, was definitely ascertained. In the 
City Reports of 1879, the seal appears un- 
corrected on the title-page of the Mayor's 




address, and corrected on those of the other 
pamphlets. 

It is a question whether the date of 
founding is not equally in need of correc- 
tion or excision. It is true that on De- 
cember 28, 1630, the Governor and Assist- 
ants "grew to this resolution, to bind all 
the Assistants (Mr. Endicott and Mr. 
Sharpe excepted . . . ) to build houses at a 
place a mile east from Watertown, near 
Charles River, the next spring, and to 
winter there the ne.xt year; that so ... if 
God would, a fortified town might there 
grow up." But it is open to question 
whether agreeing to found a town the ne.xt 
year can be called founding it, especially 
when, as in this case, the agreement was 
broken in fact and in spirit. The simple 
truth is that the designers of the seal were 
led astray by the examples of neighboring 
towns like Boston and Watertown; whereas 
Newton belongs in the class of towns — 
Waltham, for e.xample — that were not 
founded at all, but, like Topsy, "just 
growed." 

The first charter, according to one of 
its framers, was of necessity "prepared 
with comparatively little consideration," 
being in many ways modelled upon the 
charters of other Massachusetts towns, 



which had been free copies of the Boston 
charter. It provided for the division of 
the City into six wards (later seven) of ap- 
proximately equal voting strength, with a 
provision for redistricting every five years 
if necessary. There were to be two legis- 
lative bodies, — a Board of Aldermen con- 
sisting of one member from each ward, to 
be elected at large; and a Common Coun- 
cil consisting of twelve members, two to 
be elected in each ward. The mayor 
was to hold office for one year. There 
were to be separate departments for high- 
ways, for sewers, for street lights, etc. 

III. NEWTON AS A CITY 

23. The "Era of Good Feeling," 1874-1883 
The unanimous choice of the citizens 
for Newton's first Mayor was James F. C. 
Hyde, chairman of the committee which 
had secured the Charter. He was a di- 
rect descendant in the fifth generation of 
that Jonathan Hyde who had come to 
Cambridge Village in 1647, 'i"d had 
bought the land near Wiswall's Pond in 
1656. He was also descended from the 
first Edward Jackson. He had served 
the town as Selectman, as member of the 
School Board, and as Representative, was 
very active in many local enterprises, and 
was largely instrumental in developing the 
southern part of the town, where his own 
ancestral lands were situated. He was 
unanimously re-elected for a second year, 
and then gave way to the Hon. Alden 
Speare, who had removed to Newton from 
Boston in 1864, and bought a part of the 
estate of Rev. Mr. Homer, fifth pastor of 
the First Church. He at once became 
active in public service, and gave liberally 
to all public uses, including one gift of a 
thousand dollars to the Public Library. 
Like his predecessor, he was unanimously 
elected for two successive years. 

Almost the first act of the new munici- 
pality was to carry out plans previously 
formed for providing a public water sup- 
ply. The first scheme had been to utilize 
the three great ponds within the City 
limits, but in 1874, Royal M. Pulsifer, 
F. J. Parker, and Robert R. Bishop were 
appointed Water Commissioners, and their 
investigations led to a change of plan. 
Under their efficient direction the entire 
system — consisting of supply wells and a 
filter basin on the Needham side of the 



30 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON 



Charles River at Upper Falls, a reservoir 
for distribution on Waban Hill, and 48 
miles of street mains — was installed and 
the pumps were started within one year 
and five days. The initial cost of the sys- 
tem ($766,157.22) was nearly $84,000 
below the estimate, a fine example of in- 
telligent public service. The supply has 
since been increased by seven artesian 
wells and the City now lays about a mile 
of pipes each year. 

Newton's latest cession of territory was 
made about this time, but with no ap- 
preciable loss of land, and with the i^ain 



Hill Reservoir. This work involved the 
building of the magnificent "Echo Bridge" 
at the Upper Falls. The bridge contains 
seven arches in its 500 feet of length, but 
its glory is the central span of 130 feet, 
springing on a radius of 69 feet, — one of 
the largest arches in the world. It is 
one of Newton's notable sights, not only 
because of its massive yet graceful ap- 
pearance, but also because of its beautiful 
setting with the falls to the east, the quieter 
waters below, and the wooded sides of the 
gorge forming a green background. The 
echo that gives it its name is extraordinary. 




of a permanent park on her borders at 
Chestnut Hill. A conduit for the Lake 
Cochituate water sup])ly had been laid 
through Newton between 1846 and 1848, 
the tunnel under Waban Hill being ex- 
cavated through hard rock for nearly 
half a mile. The reservoir at Chestnut Hill 
occupied a basin lying partly in Newton, 
and in order to control the entire drainage 
of the basin, Boston now acquired from 
Newton the necessary land within its limits, 
and ceded an equivalent tract from the 
northwest corner of Brighton. 

In 1876 and 1877, the second great con- 
duit for supplying Boston with water 
(the "Sudbury River Conduit") was car- 
ried through Newton to the Chestnut 



a pistol-shot being repeated twent\-t"ive 
times. This conduit also required a tunnel 
under Chestnut Hill nearly twice as long 
as that of the Cochituate Conduit under 
Waban Hill, and much of this w^as driven 
through rock so hard that no lining was 
necessary. The Hill itself is the conduit. 

In 1877 occurred the first contested 
election under the new regime. Newton 
had been overwhelmingly Republican in 
politics since the Civil War; now a Demo- 
crat, Henry C. Hayden, polled 875 votes 
as an opposition candidate to W. B. Fowle, 
who won with 1036 votes. 

In 1879 and 1880, the citizens recognized 
the splendid public services of Royal M. 
Pulsifer as a member of the Committee on 



NEWTON: VILLAGE, TOWN, AND CITY 



31 



the City Charter, as Chairman of the Water 
Commission, and as a member of the 
Board of Aldermen, as a promoter of the 
Newton Cottage Hospital and of the 
Newton Club, by making him their unani- 
mous choice for Mayor. In his first 
inaugural address he called attention to 
the defects in the Charter, and urged 
modifications to adapt it to local needs, 
including a longer term of office for the 
mayor, and a single legislative body. His 
administration was signalized by the adop- 
tion of civil-service reform principles in 
City affairs. Thenceforth the tenure of 
all appointive officers in Newton was 
permanent during good behavior. 

24. The Strenuous Life, 1883-1896 
In 1883, Mayor William P. Ellison, who 
had served for the customary two terms, 
again became a candidate for the oflTice. 
A "Citizens' Party" was formed, with the 
rallying cry, "no third term," :iiiil 1)\ a 
majority of 114 elected J. ^\V^k■y Kinili::!!, 
the first person to be raised U> the Miacu- 
alty from the Commdii Counul. Hut 
"Consistency is the l>u,<,'l>e^ir of little 
minds 1" (j'nce in power, the Cili/eiis' 
l\irl\- fdi'L^ot its principles (nr i^:;iiie(l in 
wisdom), for it kept Mr. Kiml,;;ll in ..lliie 
for five successive )'ears. Then the Re- 
publicans took a leaf from their op- 
ponents' book, and elected Councilman 
Heman M. Burr. In 1891 the Citizens' 
Party went outside the City Government 
for a candidate, and won their last success 
in the election of Hermon E. Hibbard. 
With the election of John A. Fenno in 
1893 began a long series of "straight Re- 
publican" victories. In Mayor Fenno's 
administration, the City may be said to 
have thrown off the last link that bound 
it to its former status, for he had the 
pleasure of paying and cancelling the last 
of the notes constituting the Town's in- 
debtedness at the time of its incorporation 
as a City. 

But political strife has never more than 
ruffled the surface of our civic Hfe. Below 
the surface, the trend was towards a steady 
growth in the consciousness of a common 
life, common interests, and common civic 
duties. In contrast with the later years 
of town life, when the greater fraterni- 
ties and national organizations like the 
Y. M. C. A. found lodgment in Newton, 
and the local village improvement societies 



arose, this was the period of beginnings 
for our great charitable organizations for 
the relief of the poor and the sick, and the 
care of the youthful and the aged; and 
of the gathering of the citizens of the 
several wards into social clubs like the 
Newton Club and the PA; yew,— fuller 
accounts of which are to be found in later 
pages. 

In industries, the period is marked by 
the multiplication of new firms outside of 
the earlier industrial villages, the enlarge- 
ment of the older ones, and their concentra- 
tion on a single product, in line with the 
trend of modern business. The Bemis 
Company, now the .Vawa \\\\\>, has con- 
fined itself to the m;iiiiil':;i imr m|" woollen 
cloths, of which it iiKimif:i( luics several 
miles a week. The Pettee Company, 
taken over by the Newton Mills Company 
after Mr. Otis Pettee's death, finally be- 
came consolidated with the Saco Company 
in 1882, and soon after ceased to manu- 
facture cotton, thenceforth employing its 
$800,000 of capital in the line first selected 
by Mr. Pettee. The Curtis Mill at the 
Lower Falls, now occupied by W. S. 
Cordingly & Sons, is devoted to the pro- 
duction of Shoddy goods. The Silver 
Lake Company, founded in 1866 for the 
making of braided cord, credited such a 
market for this then novel iimtkut that it 
was compelled to doulile its eapacity in 
1880. The Nonantum Worsted Company, 
starting in 1867 to manufacture worsted 
goods, added the business of making 
worsted machinery in 1886. Other recent 
industries are the manufacture of knit 
goods by the Thomas Dalby Co., of 
starch by H. Barker & Co., of laundry 
machinery by the Empire Company. 

In civic as well as in business life, the 
end of the nineteenth century was a period 
of combinations, of concentration, of enter- 
prises on a large scale. One example 
of this was the great Metropolitan Sewerage 
System, which solved Newton's most per- 
ple.xing problem. In 1891 this work was 
so far completed that Newton began 
making connections, about 91 miles of 
small pipe sewers being laid, at a cost of 
one and a half millions. The next year, 
Mayor Hiljbard appointed Joseph R. 
Leeson, Edmund W. Converse, and Edwin 
B. Haskell commissioners to report on a 
S}'stem of boulevards which should correct 
and supplement the existing street system. 



32 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON 



To speak more accurately, there was no 
street system. Roads had grown up casu- 
ally, as the circle of different villages 
developed, and the main thoroughfares 
were inadequate to the demands of street 
car traffic, while large tracts in the centre 
of the town were still hardly accessible. 
This commission recommended an east 
and west boulevard through the unde- 
veloped heart of the town, the widening 
of Walnut Street for a main artery north 
and south, and the widening of Washing- 
ton and Auburn Streets, where the electric 
car lines from Boston to Framingham 
might be accommodated. The building 
of Commonwealth Avenue, begim in 1895, 
gave to Newton a magnificent triple high- 
way five miles in length and a hundred 
and twenty feet wide, where the motor car, 
the carrj'all, and the bicycle can travel 
side by side (for a fraction of a second at 
least) conveying the citizens of less favored 
communities through the heart of the city. 
The problem of grade crossings had long 
ve.xed the city authorities. The engineers 
of the Boston & Albany Railroad de- 
clared it impracticable to lower the tracks, 
and plans were debated for elevating them 
or removing them to a location near the 
river. IVIayor Henry E. Bothfeld did the 
City an inestimable service by combining 
the scheme for depressing the tracks with 
that for widening Washington Street, and 
the necessary authority was secured during 
his administration, which lasted but one 
year owing to his uncertain health. Be- 
tween 1895 and 1898, the tracks were de- 
pressed, the land on the south side of 
Washington Street was seized for a distance 
of three miles, ninety-six buildings were 
removed, the street was widened to eighty- 
five feet, giving ample room for teaming, 
pleasure driving, and a through electric 
line to Framingham, and the remaining 
land was left to delight the e)'e with its 
green turf and shrubbery. The widening 
of Park and Tremont Streets, permitting 
an electric line to be carried around Hun- 
newell Hill, completed the work on east 
and west routes. 

25. Varium et miitabile semper — civitas ! 

Mayor Bothfeld feeling unable to serve 
more than a single term, the duty of guard- 
ing the city's interests during these great 
changes fell upon Mayor Henry E. Cobb, 



who served for three years, 1896-98. His 
administration was marked by a re- 
vision of the City Charter, in accordance 
with a report made by a commission 
headed by Mr. Bothfeld, and along lines 
first suggested by Mayor Pulsifer in 1880. 
The Common Council was abolished. 
The Aldermen were doubled in number, 
with two-year terms. Election by the 
whole of the voters of candidates from the 
several wards solved the problem of local 
versus general representation. The legisla- 
tive and the executive departments were 
sharply separated, the School Board and 
the Aldermen now choosing their own 
chairmen. Several closely related depart- 
ments — highway, sewer, and street-lights 
— were consolidated. The spirit of the 
whole charter was modern. It embodied 
the ideas of concentration and correlation 
of forces, of power joined with responsi- 
bility. 

The political history of the City under the 
new charter is too recent to warrant ex- 
tended treatment here. The list of Mayors 
includes Edwin B. Wilson (two terms), 
Edward L. Pickard (one term), John W. 
Weeks, Alonzo R. Weed, and Edgar W. 
Warren (two terms each), all of whom 
have served the City with signal ability. 
It is worthy of note that however sharp 
the contest for the position of Mayor, no 
successful candidate has been refused a 
second election. All single terms have 
been due to the ill-health of the incumbent 
of the ofiice. 

The changes and public improvements 
of the last few years are also familiar to 
all our citizens. Of the boulevard along 
the lower course of Cheesecake Brook, 
of the abolition of grade crossings on the 
south side of the city, and of the network 
of electric lines which spread itself over 
Newton streets from ever\^vhere to every- 
where during the decade from 189 1 to 1901, 
there is not space — nor need — to tell. 
What with the hum of the trolley, the clang 
of the motormen's gongs, and the jingle 
of the conductors' bells, one does not need 
to look in the Mirror to find Newton's 
electric cars. Yet one line, the Boston & 
Worcester, should be mentioned, because it 
bids fair to do for the southern side of the 
city what Commonwealth Avenue has 
done for the centre, and because of the 
circumstances of its construction. In the 
case of the earlier electric railways, the 



NEWTON: VILLAGE, TOWN, AND CITY 



33 



City gave much and received nothing, 
except transportation facilities. In 1900, 
at the building of the line through Walnut, 
Crafts, and Waltham Streets, the railroad 
company bore the cost of widening the 
street. But the Boston & Worcester 
Company constructed its ninety-foot boule- 
vard, paid $15,000 for land damages, and 



destinies of the State and the Nation. 
Roger Sherman, born on Waverley Avenue, 
and William Williams, grandson of the 
Isaac M'illiams who originally owned much 
of West Newton, were signers of the Dec- 
laration of Independence. Another grand- 
son, Ephraim Williams, born in Newton 
and brought up by Aljraham Jackson, 




i)ia(;kam of the growth of population 



bound itself to care for the future lighting 
of the roadways, — a hopeful example for 
future legislators in distributing public 
franchises. 



26. Newton as a Centre oj Force 

_ No sketch of Newton's history, however 
limited in scope, would be complete with- 
out some reference to the great movements 
which have received their first impulse 
within its borders. There is not one of 
its villages that has not made its influence 
felt far beyond its river boundaries; there 
are several that have helped to shape the 



made the bequest that led to the founding 
of ^^^illiamstown and Williams College, — 
the first of Newton's many contributions 
to education. As has been' told at length 
elsewhere, Newton claims through Su- 
sanna Rowson the first seminary for the 
higher education of girls; through Eliza- 
beth P. Peabody the introduction of the 
kindergarten into the United States; 
through Horace Mann the normal school 
system, and the organization of the whole 
public school system of Massachusetts. 
Three of her citizens have been Secreta- 
ries of the State Board of Education. As 
agent of the Peabody Fund of three and a 



34 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON 



half million dollars, Barnas Sears of New- 
ton Centre was largely responsible for the 
creation of public schools throughout the 
southern states. F. J. Campbell of New- 
tonville, himself wholly blind, was the 
organizer and director of the Ro3'al Col- 
lege for the Blind and Academy of Music 
in London. Charles Barnard, in found- 
ing the first evening school in Boston, near 







H^.^'-O^D^■.S^'ITH.N. 






.^ 




r 






4.^ , 




■ 'Ae^ 




t' 






<'.., 




:>/ 






^^^^^ 


>;- -'■' 


c .^_^^ 








"*3" 






ejT 


^r^Ly/. "■^' 




/y^-2. . 



the present Barnard Memorial, pointed 
the way to the solution of one of Ameri- 
ca's greatest economic problems. From 
small beginnings the New England Con- 
servatory of Music was lifted by Eben 
Tourjee of Auburndale to an institution 
of national importance. The songs of 
George F. Root, who formerly lived at 
Newton Corner, spoke to the hearts of the 
American people during the stress of the 
Civil War as directly as the lyrics of Whit- 
tier and of Lowell spoke to their intellects 
and consciences. 

But in Rev. S. F. Smith, Newton claims 



the author of a song limited to no era, 
and national in its theme and its appeal. 
The composer of a National Hymn is 
happy in having performed a service unique 
and enduring. It is peculiarly fitting that 
Dr. Smith's .IwenVa should have been first 
sung in public by a body of school children, 
and that the occasion should have been the 
celebration of Independence Day. It is also 
an interesting fact 
that the music (writ- 
ten in England a 
century earlier) 
should have come 
to Mr. Smith by 
way of Germany, 
where the teaching 
of patriotic songs to 
the German youths 
had been adopted 
as a powerful stim- 
ulus to revolt 
against the tyranny 
of Napoleon Bona- 
parte. The song 
was composed 
about 1832, when 
Mr. Smith and 
Lowell Mason were 
at work on the first 
<hild's song -book 
published in Amer- 
ica. In 1842, the 
author was ordained 
jMstor of the First 
Baptist Church of 
Newton Centre, 
and became thence- 
forth the Poet Lau- 
reate of Newton as 
well as of the Uni- 
ted States. It was 
Mr. Smith who 
was chosen to compose the hymns for the 
dedication of the Newton Cemetery in 1857, 
for the dedication of the Soldiers' Monu- 
ment in 1864, for the dedication of the 
Newton Public Library in 1870, and for 
the Town's Centennial Celebration in 1876; 
and when in 1865 the Town began to feel 
the need of some adequate record of its 
past history, Mr. Smith was chosen to pre- 
pare an official History of Newton. The 
result was a monumental and pains-tak- 
ing work, the basis on which all future 
histories of the town must be founded. 
In Dr. James Freeman of King's Chapel 



NEWTON: VILLAGE, TOWN, AND CITY 



35 



Boston, and his grandson Rev. James Free- 
man Clarke, Newton claims the founder 
and the expounder of New England Uni- 
tarianism; in Rev. Barnas Sears the 
founder of the Baptist denomination in 
Germany; and in Rev. F. E. Clark the 
originator of a movement of incalculable 
importance to all Christian countries, — 
the organization of their youth into a 
"World's Union of Christian Endeavor." 
Lastly, in all denominations, from Eliot's 
day to our own, Newton has been the 
birthplace of far-reaching missionary en- 
terprises, giving freely her money and her 
sons and daughters to carry religion and 
civilization into all the world and to every 
creature. 

In the practical constructive work ne- 
cessitated by the enormous growth of the 
United States since the advent of the steam 
railroad, Newton has had a large share. 
Hon. William Jackson was lecturing in 
Newton on the importance of this new 
invention a decade before Massachusetts 
had seen a locomotive. His lecture, re- 
peated elsewhere, and his articles in the 
larger city newspapers, were the chief fac- 
tors in interesting capital in new means 
of trapsportation. Besides the Boston b" 
Worcester, Mr. Jackson was instrumental 
in organizing railroads in Maine, New 
Hampshire, Rhode Island, and the Middle 
^\'est. It is surprising to note how many 
of the greatest railroad systems of the 
country have been promoted, officered, or 
financed by Newton men. Beginning with 
William Parker, manager of the Baltimore 
&^ Ohio and the Panama Railroads, the 
list of officers of national reputation in- 
cludes George C. Lord and W. S. Tucker- 
man of the Boston &= Maine, Charles P. 
Clark of the New York, New Haven 6^ 
Hartjord, Wm. B. Fowle of the Pejinsyl- 
vania Central, C. C. and I. T. Burr of the At- 



chison, Topeka &= Santa Fe, Levi C. W'ade 
of the Mexican Central, Gardner Colby 
of the Wiscofisin Central, and Alden 
Speare and R. M. Pulsifer, who were 
directors in many companies. Mr. J. 
Wiley Edmands, treasurer of the Pacific 
Mills in Lawrence, v^ith their five thou- 
sand operatives weaving enough cloth to 
supply a nation's needs, was a pioneer in 
the creation of those monster corpora- 
tions which within the last quarter cen- 
tury have transformed industrial con- 
ditions and created a new set of political 
conditions. 

In political life Newton was especially 
prominent during the period of the Civil 
\\aT. Horatio King of West Newton 
was Postmaster-General in the Cabinet of 
the blundering and misguided Buchanan. 
Ale.xander H. Rice, born at Newton Lower 
Falls and educated in Seth Davis's school, 
was a member of Congress throughout the 
Civil War period, and was Governor of 
Massachusetts from 1876 to 1878. William 
Claflin, whose occupancy of the ancient 
Fuller-Hull c>iatc link> liiiii with Newton's 
earliest history, rcninwd hrre from Hop- 
kinton in 1855, two years after his eleva- 
tion from the Lower to the Upper House 
of the state legislature. He was president 
of the Senate during the Civil War, Lieu- 
tenant-Governor from 1866 to 1868, and 
Governor from 1869 to 1871. From 1877 
to 1 88 1 he was a ^lember of Congress. 
His public services are written in the 
annals of his City, State, and Country. 
His home-life among us is depicted by his 
daughter elsewhere in this volume. His 
name will be forever linked with our 
educational life through the Claflin School 
of Newtonville, and his memory will be 
forever associated with the estate now being 
set apart by the citizens for civic uses 
affecting all future generations. 



MEMORABILIA 



WILL OF EDWARD JACKSON, OF 
NEWTON, MASS. 



WHO DIED IN 



I, AGED 79 YEARS * 



TO all people to whom these presents 
shall come, Edward Jackson Senr. of Cam- 
bridge Village, in the county of Middlesex, 
in the Jurisdiction of the Massachusetts in 
New England, sendeth greeting — 

Know ye that I the sd Edward Jackson, 
being infirme of body, but of disposing 
judgment and memory, do make this my 
last will and testament as followeth hereby 
revoking and disannulling all former wills 
either verbal or written, by me made at 
any time heretofore — 

I do commit my soul unto the father of 
all mercyes, and into the hands of my Lord 
Jesus Christ my Redeemer and all suffi- 
cient Saviour — and to the blessed spiritt of 
grace to behold glory forevermore. 

And this my body and house of clay to 
the dust untill that day of resurrection, 
then body and soul shall be united againe — 
And as for that outward estate that the 
Lord hath committed to my trust to give 
him account of, I do in this manner and 
forme following, dispose thereof— I do give 
and bequeath to my loving and deare wife, 
Elizabeth, one silver bowle, one gilded 
silver cup, one gilded silver salt, wch were 
given unto her by her honored father, Mr. 
John Newgate; Also her virginals and one 
cubard and my will is that she shall have 
and injoy all that part of her estate which 
came to her by the sale of her farme at 
pulling point, as also what mony and plate 
she hath by her or debts due to her by bills, 
bonds mortgages or any other way for 
mony lent by her to any of her children, 
or to any other persone whomsoever, all of 
which shall at her own pleasure to dispose 
of, and no person to make claime to any 
part thereof. 

I do give to her, my sd wife her heirs 
and assignes forever twelve (12) acres of 

• Primed by the courtesy of Miss Lucretia Jackson Fuller, 
owner of the original document. 



land out of my farme as it is now layd out 
and bounded. — 

Also I do give to my wife, and to my son 
Edward Jackson to have and to injoy, my 
dwelling hous with all outhousing there- 
unto appertaining, with all the lands on 
the north side of the hous to the river, being 
forty acres more or less, with my meddow 
commonly called Bushes meddow, of which 
hous, lands and meddow,* my wife shall 
injoy the one half during her naturall life; 
and' after the decease of my sd wife, the 
whole shall be to my son Edward and his 
heirs forever — But if my wife shall change 
her condition by marriage, my son Edward 
shall thereupon injoy the whole as above- 
said, provided he shall pay to his honored 
mother the sum of five pounds pr annum 
during her naturaU life. 

Also, I do give unto my wife and son 
Edward, to each a like share, all my come 
and stocke, both of neatte kine, horses, 
sheep and swine, all my househould goods, 
wearing apparell, and a debt of ten pounds f 
in mony due to me from Jno Fuller senr. 
for land by me to him sold: 

And, moreover, to my son Edward, I 
give my carts and plows, and aU maner of 
tooles and impliments to me belonging — 
I give him my silver hat-band, the three 
martire books and Turkish History — 

And my will is, that my wife and son 
Edward shall out of that estate I have 
given them, pay unto my daughter Ruth 
Jackson twenty pounds in mony, and 
thirty pounds in goods, and also ten pounds 
more in mony, being a legacy given her by 
her honored grandfather, Mr. John New- 
gate— 

I do give and bequeath unto my son 
Jonothan Jackson, t his heirs and assignes 
forever one hundred and sixty (160) acres 
out of my farme as it is now laid out and 
bounded; he shall not sell the whole or 
any part thereof without the advice and 



• This house was on the noith slope of Hunnewell Hill. 
The meadow was on the Brighton side of the line, 
tin part payment for the present "Claflin estate." 
t Removed to Boston, and settled on Comhill: sold this 



MEMORABILIA 



37 



consent of my Executor and my two sons 
in law, John Ward and Thomas Prentice, 
or the major part of them: 

I give him my seale ring, one silver 
poringer, one gilded silver spoone, which, 
together with more than an hundred and 
seventy pounds, the greatest part in mony, 
by him already received, and what I shall 
hereafter mention in this my will, I do 
judge a sufficient portion for him — 

I do give and bequeath to my son Sebiss 
Jackson, his heirs and assignes forever, 
that my hous in which he at present dwell- 
eth, with an hundred and fifty (150) acres 
of land thereunto adjoining as it is already 
laid out and bounded — I do give him two 
silver spoons — 

I do give and confirme unto my two sons 
in law John Ward and Thomas Prentice, 
their heirs and assignes forever, one parcel! 
of land which is bounded by the land of 
Thomas Hammond on the east, the land 
of Zachary Hicks on the south, the land of 
John Clarke on the west, the land of Capt. 
Prentice on the north. 

I do give to my daughter, Hanna \\'ard, 
one gold ring with this motto — "God's in- 
tent none can prevent" — also two guilded 
silver spoons, and some of my linnen if my 
deare wife shall so cause. 

I do give and confirme unto my son in 
law Thomas Prentice, his heirs and as- 
signes forever, one hundred (100) acres of 
land near the meddow commonly called 
"Bald Pate Meddow," and if there be not 
so much in that tract, then it is my will he 
shall have a quarter of that meddow called 
"Bauld Pate Meddow," as it is laid out, 
bounded by Jonathan Hide's, on the south, 
and the meddow of \'insent Druse on the 
north — 

I give to my daughter Rebeckah Prentice, 
one gold ring with the motto "Memento 
mory," and two guilded silver spoons, and 
as much linnen as my wife shall judge 
meet to bestow on her — • 

I do give and confirme to my son in law 
Nehemiah Hobart,* his heirs and assignes 
forever, twenty and five acres of land, as 
it is now laid out near to his hous,t and 
five acres more, as it is now bounded, ad- 
joining to the land of my son Seabyss, 
which said five acres I hereby give him, 
my said son in law liberty to make sale of: 



t Just north of the i 



I also give him one fifth part of my up- 
land to the said marsh adjoyning — • 

And twent\--five acres of land, being the 
one half of a parcell of my land, near to 
the land of Elder Thomas Wiswall, either 
at the east or west end of the said tract of 
land, as he shall make his choice — 

I do give and confirme unto my son in 
law Joseph Fuller, his heirs and assignes 
forever, one fifth part of my long marsh 
at the pines as it is already laid out, as also 
a fifth part of my upland to said marsh 
adjoyning, and twenty-three (23) acres of 
land out of my farme to him alreddy laid 
out, to which it is my will to add one acre 
more, provided he shall allow an highway 
over his land,* in some convenient place 
at his direction, either open or with gates, 
for the families of Jno. Fuller senr, and 
Lieut. Isaac Williams — 

I do give and confirme to my son in law, 
John Prentice, his heirs and assignes for- 
ever, one fifth part of my long marsh at 
the pines, as it is to him alreddy laid out, 
as also one fifth part of my upland to the 
said marsh adjo}Tiing; and a parcell of 
meddow containing four acres more or less, 
southward from the meddow which I sold 
to Thomas Greenwood. 

I do give and confirme unto my son in 
law, Nathaniel Wilson, his heirs and as- 
signes forever, one fifth part of m}- long 
marsh at the pines as it is alreddy laid out, 
as also one fifth part of my upland to the 
said marsh adjo\aiing. 

I do gi\-e to my daughter, Ruth Jackson, 
besides what I have herein alreddy ex- 
pressed, one fifth part of my long marsh 
at the pines as it is alreddy laid out, as also 
one fifth part of my upland to the said 
marsh adjo}Tiing: and twenty acres of 
land out of my farme betwixt the land of 
my son Jonathan, and the land of my son 
in law Joseph Fuller, as it is to her alreddy 
laid out. 

I do give to my son Edward Jackson, 
and to my son in law John Ward, my five 
volumes Turchus' his History, to be for 
their use betwixt them during both their 
natural lives, the longest liver shall injoy 
the whole, paying fifty shillings to the heirs, 
executors or administrators of the deceased. 

I do give and confirme to my grandchild 
Jno. Ward Jr. his heirs and assignes for- 
ever, twenty acres of land out of my farm 
eastward from the land of Joseph Fuller. — 

* .Approximately the line of Otis Street or Highland .\ venue. 



38 



THE Mli^ROR OF NEWTON 



I do give to my five grandchildren which 
bear my name Edward forty acres of my 
remote land, that is to say, to each one ten 
(lo) acres to be laid out together by my 
Executors, and if any of them shall de- 
cease under age, his or their part so de- 
ceasing, shall be distributed equally among 
the survivors — Also, my will is, that what 
lands I have given to my children above 
named, they shall not have power to sell 
or alienate any part thereof, (excepting 
what I have in this my will expressly ap- 
proved of), unless upon a religious or moral 
account, or by leave obtained from the 
honored General Court, or County-Court 
where such lands are — 

I do give to my grandchildren and great- 
grandchildren, to the number of thirty six, 
ten shillings apiece to buy them bibles with, 
which shall be paid to them by my execu- 
tors — 

I do give to mv two sons in law Mr. John 
& Thomas Oliver, Sir Walter Raleigh's 
History, and Doctor Willett's Synopsis 
Papisimi — 

I do give to my daughter in law, Eliza- 
beth Wiswall, one small silver beer 
cup — 

I do give unto the College at Cambridge, 
"Broughton's Chronology," in a manu- 
script containing twenty and two sheets 
of parchment, requesting the Reverend 
President and fellows to promote the print- 
ing thereof — Also I do give to the said Col- 
ledge, a tract of land at Billerica, being four 
hundred acres granted to me by the towne 
of Cambridge,* as by their towne book 
doth appeare. — Also such debts as my 
Executors shall receive, at any time, from 
any debtor or debtors of mine in old Eng- 
land, my will is that such debts shall be 
given to the said Colledge — 

Also, my will is that when my son in law 
Hobart shall have made his choice of the 
land I have given him, near to Elder 
Thomas Wiswall's, as aforesaid, the part 
remaining, being about twenty-five acres, 
shall be for the use of the ministry in this 
village forever — 

I do bequeath to my honored friend Capt. 
Thomas Prentice one small diamond ring — 

I do give and dispose of the remainder 
of my farme, being somewhat more than 
an hundred acres to my sons Jonathan and 
Seabyss — 

And to my sons in law John Ward and 

* At the division of the "Shawshine lands" in 1652. 



Thomas Prentice, to each, that one part 
which I have alreddy caused to be laid out 
to them, and further, — my will is that my 
son in law Thomas Prentice shall have and 
enjoy my son Jonathan's share, as it is 
now laid out and bounded, being about 
thirty acres less or more, provided he shall 
pay the sum of sixty pounds in money to 
my said son Jonathan, or in any other pay 
at mony price, as they shall agree, which 
payment being well and truly made, the 
above named Thomas Prentice shall have 
and hold the said parcell of land to him 
and his heirs forever. 

Also, my will is that my executors shall 
make sale of my tract of land at Brush 
hill, for the procuring of monys to pay the 
above mentioned legacies to my grand- 
children, and Great grandchildren, and 
that neither my said grand children, nor 
great-grandchildren, nor any on their be- 
half, shall demand the said legacies of my 
Executors until such time as mony shall be 
procured by the sale of said lands. 

It is also my will that so much of my 
estate as I have not in this my last will and 
testament, particularly and expressly dis- 
posed of, whether in lands or books, or 
debts to me due, shall be divided by my 
Executors unto seven of my children, to 
each a like share, (my debts and funeral 
charges being first paid out of it) that is 
to say, to my son Jonathan Jackson, my 
son Edward Jackson, my daughters Sarah 
Hobart, Lydia Fuller, Elizabeth Prentice, 
Hannah Wilson and Ruth Jackson, only 
my will is that if any of my seven children 
last named shall depart this life before 
they shall receive their portions in this part 
of my estate, their part shall be equally 
distributed among the survivors, or if any 
of them shall have no children at their de- 
cease, their part shall be equally divided 
among them that have — 

And further, it is my will that if any of 
my children shall put my executors to any 
trouble by making claims to my estate or 
any part thereof more than I have in this 
my will to them bequeathed, that is to say, 
if they, or any on their behalf shall un- 
justly molest my heirs or executors by 
lawsuits or arbitrations, he or they, shall 
forfeit all their portions, in this my will to 
him or them bequeathed — 

I do constitute, ordaine and appoint my 
Executors, my loving wife Elizabeth, my 
son Seabyss Jackson, and my son Edward 



MEMORABILIA 



Jackson, for the full execution of my will 
in all the above mentioned particulars — • 

Blessed be the Lord God of Israll for- 
evermore, Amen, Amen — 

Edward Jackson and a seale. 

Signed, sealed this nth day of June, 
in the yeare of our Lord one thousand six 
hundred eighty and one — In presence 
of us 

Abraham Jackson, Jno. Miricke, 
Jno. Mason, Isaac Bacon. 

Cambridge — 26: 6: 81 — 
Attested upon oath by Abraham Jackson 
and Jno. Miricke before Daniel Gookin 
Assist, and Thos. Danforth R. 

Entered 26: 6 81 By Thos: Dan- 
forth Recorder. 

(disposing of 1780 J acres of land.) 



TWO OLD RECEIPTS 

Newton, July 12, 1767. 
then Rec'd of Abraham Jackson three 
pounds twoll Shilling, wich is in full of my 
Right in my Late ^lother Abigail mors 
thirds E.xclusive of what is coming to me 
in my Brother Jonathan Jackson Rite in 
said Thirds. 

I say paid By me, 

Ab""' Jackson. 

Newton, August 28th, 1773. 
Rec'd of Mr. Nathan Morse a late con- 
stable One pound three Shillings and ten 
pence as part of the Town Rate Committed 
to him to collect 1768. 

Abr. Fuller, 
£1. 3-10 Town Treasurer. 



ABR.\HAM FULLER AND ISAAC 
HULL 



In a letter accompanying the reminiscences of 
Abraham Fuller and Isaac Hull that follow, Miss 
Sarah Clarke writes: — • 

"I do not know what you will think of these 
rather artlessly expressed reminiscences, but they 
have the merit of being wTitten down almost in 
the words of my grandmother. She could just 
remember her grandfather. Judge Fuller, but was 
familiar with the various anecdotes. My aunt, 
of course, could not remember him, but she was 
seventeen years old when her own grandfather, 
General Hull, died, so that she and her brother 



Lawrence (nineteen) and my father (fifteen) re- 



^ly grandfather, Abraham Fuller, owned 
five hundred acres right in the heart of 
Newton. He had begun to build a tomb 
on his own place, but one day he went 
home, and said, 

"Well, wife, I 've never been bought in 
my life and I won't be sold when I 'm dead. 
Perhaps Sally would n't sell me, but my 
grandchildren might, and I shall go lie 
in the burying ground!" 

Abraham Fuller was a very honest man. 
He could not bear a debt. When he was 
dying he said to his wife: — "Wife, have 
you paid that shoemaker twelve cents for 
mending my shoes?" 

"No," said she. 

"Send down and pay him then," said 
he. "I have never lived in debt, and I 
won't die in debt." And so they clid! 

He could not be corrupted. He had 
one cousin over at West Newton. He was 
a terrible sort of a small man, and after 
Grandpa was judge, S. kept plaguing him 
to make him Justice of the Peace. But 
Grandpa took no notice. One dav, as 
I 've heard ray father tell, Grandpa'd been 
to Concord and his old sulky was hitched 
at our door. In came S., his cousin. 

"Much obliged to you. Judge Fuller," 
said he, "much obliged to you; I see I 'm 
a Justice at last. " 

"Get along," said Grandpa. "Don't 
thank me; I 'd nothing to do with it. I'm 
sorry they made you one; I never would," 
and that was just like him. 

"Yes!" said Sarah, "my great-grand- 
father was a very remarkable man. He 
was not only honest. He was very just. 
He had a Malt House in the time of the 
old war,* and malt became very scarce. 
People told him he might sell his malt and 
make a great deal of money. ' No,' said he, 
'I shall sell it at the price I always did, and 
I will only sell a bushel at a time, and then 
nobody else can speculate,' and so he did. 
People came from Boston; and Cambridge 
College sent a man over to buy his malt, 
but he would n't let 'em have it." 

Then he was a large man, with a loud 
voice. If he shouted, he could be heard 
three miles, — in common talk, a mile! 
WTien the smallpox prevailed in Newton, 
he told Dr. Spring not to come over, one 

♦The Revolution. 



40 



THE INIIRROR OF NEWTON 



afternoon, to see his patients. If he would 
go to the top of a certain hill near his own 
house in Watertown, at three o'clock, 
Grandpa would climb to the top of Chestnut 
Hill in Newton and tell him how they were. 
Grandpa shouted "All 's well!" and Dr. 
Spring heard him. It was three miles. 

When my grandmother died, my mother 
■wanted her father's coffin opened.* The 
sexton tried to dissuade her, but she per- 
sisted, and when the lid was off, they all 
started. He looked as if he were asleep! 
"He had been dead fifty years," said 
Sarah, "when I saw him, and the resem- 
blance to his portrait was clearly distin- 
guishable. The sheet about him was 
brown, but not decayed. People came 
from far and near to see the body, they 
said it was because he was so honest. The 
doctors offered all sorts of solutions, but 
none of them were satisfactory. He had 
died in the spring, in a very hot week. No 
body in the tomb was sound like his. At 
last Dr. Warren inserted some instrument 
to try an experiment. The chest fell in 
and the body became dust. People used to 
carr\' away little bits of his winding sheet 
as they would a relic." 

"He believed in Divine Providence," 
added Mrs. Clarke. "He was a Judge, 
and the day before the British entered 
Concord, the court sat there. In the room 
where the court sat were all the town 
records in an open bureau, telling how- 
weak the country- was, how ill supplied 
with ammunition, etc. Abraham Fuller 
got on to his horse and started to go home 
to Newton, and his horse would n't go. 
'The Lord wants me to go back to Con- 
cord,' said he, after trying once or twice 
to move the beast. WTien he got back into 
the square, he wondered what he was to do. 
He thought of these papers all lying loose, 
and stuffed his saddle-bags full. Then 
his horse started willingly enough, and 
only think! — the next day, the British en- 
tered the town! To the day of his death 
he thought it was an interposition of Provi- 
dence." 

■"He had three thousand dollars in Con- 
tinental money when the war was over, 
and people said to him, 'If I were you I 
would sue the Government.' 'No,' said 
he, 'that is my contribution to the war. I 
shall bum most of it and leave a little to 
my children.'" 

* This was a Liter occasion of which Sarah speaks. 



Is.\.\c Hull 
Did n't I ever tell you about the Com- 
modore? He was Joe Hull's son. Joe 
had seven, and he thought my father was 
getting along pretty well, so he asked him 
to take one of 'em. Now father had seven 
daughters and one son himself, so he did n't 
know what to do, and he wrote word he 'd 
think about it. But one day father was 
standing out in front of the house, and the 
stage drove up. A little boy dropped off 
the box. "How d' ye do, Uncle ?" said he. 
"WTio are you?" said the General. "I 'm 
Isaac Hull," said the boy. Here he was, 
come; and my father knew nothing about 
it! 

Father sent him to school, to Charles P. 
Curtis's grandfather, old Mr. Pelham, but 
he would n't learn; he pined to go to sea. 
WTien he was about twelve j-ears old, his 
uncle brought Captain Scott home to dinner 
one day, and the Captain said he 'd take 
him a voyage. But when the boy was 
sent for, he looked so ])uny that Captain 
Scott said, "I shall have lo take a nurse, 
too." "No you won't," said Isaac. "I 
can take care of your cabin and do every- 
thing for you." So he went as a cabin 
boy, and the very first voyage they were 
cast away, and Isaac took such care of the 
captain that he saved his life, and we 
heard no more about "nursing"! Then 
they got him into the Na\7 as a Lieutenant, 
and he went right up — one, two, three, 
four! 

When General Hull was at Detroit, 
Isaac wanted to resign his commission 
because of a }'ounger officer who was pro- 
moted right over his head, but father per- 
suaded him not to resign, and when the 
war came, he was promoted, and then you 
know he took the Guerriere. 

He was very bold; once when there were 
four English ships outside, he sailed with- 
out orders. He would have got it, if any 
misfortune had happened, but in spite of 
a great calm, he contrived to get safe into 
port again. 

He went with the Constitution to Liver- 
pool and carried out our ambassador. He 
was ordered to remain six weeks for some 
ambassador from the Continent, but he 
did n't like it, the English treated him so. 
One day three officers, who boarded with 
him at the Adelphi, followed him along 
the street, jeering. One said, "\\'ho is 
that little man?" "Don't vou know?" 



MEJ^IORABILIA 



returned another; "that 's Psulm-singing 
Isaac from the great State of Connecticut. 
The Yankees have given him the biggest 
ship they 've got." Isaac turned round. 
"Gentlemen," said he, "I perceive there 
is to be trouble between your country and 
mine, and when it comes, bv the Lord 



to 'em," and they tore the Guerricre all 
to ribbons. 



GENERAL WILLIAM HULL 
William Hull was born in Derbv, Conn. 



1753. His 




Courtesy oj The ,1 n 



nd Honorable Ar 



'/TZ^^ 



^cc^ 



that made me, I mean to sing you a Psalm 
vou will remember!" 

And it was n't long before he took the 
Guerriere! At first his men were awful 
mad, for Isaac would n't let them fire. 
The Englishmen began by firing away up 
into the sails. Isaac thought nobody would 
get hurt, so when they were all tired out, 
he said to his men, "Fire! and be damned 



ancestor, Richard Hull, 
made freeman in Massa- 
chusetts in 1634, removed 
to New Haven, Conn., in 
1639. His son John re- 
moved to Derby, Conn.; 
and his grandson, Joseph, 
wr.s the grandfather of 
William. William's 
father, Joseph Hull, was 
a farmer. His eldest 
brother, the father of 
Isaac Hull, who com- 
manded the frigate Con- 
stitution in its battle with 
the Guerriere, became, 
like William, an ofiicer 
in the Revolutionary 
army. Among his ex- 
ploits was that of tak- 
ing a British armed 
sell, .mcr in Long Island 
SuuiKJ. lie Weill out of 
Derbv in a l.(iat in the 
night-time with twenty 
men, boarded the schoon- 
er, and took her into 
port with her crew. An- 
nther lircither was also an 
DlVKeriii the Revolution. 
William Hull, the 
fdurtli son, graduated at 
Yale C'cillege with honors; 
afterward entered the law 
school at Litchfield, 
Conn., and was admitted 
to the bar in 1775. 

WTien the news of the 
battle of Lexington 
reached Derby a com- 
pany of soldiers was 
raised there, and William 
Hull was chosen their captain, very un- 
expectedly to himself. But, full of the 
enthusiasm of the hour, he at once accepted 
the appointment, and joining Colonel 
Webb's regiment, of which his company 
made a part, marched to Cambridge to join 
the army of Washington. His father dying 
at this time, William resigned his share of 
the inheritance, saving, "I only want my 



42 



THE MIRROR OF NF.WTON 



sword and my uniform." From that time 
till the end of the American war he con- 
tinued in the army, being present in many 
of the most important operations and en- 
gagements, such as Dorchester Heights, 
White Plains, Trenton, Princeton, Ticon- 
deroga, the surrender of Burgoyne, Fort 
Stanwix, Monmouth, Stony Point, and 
Morrisania. He was inspector under Baron 
Steuben, lieutenant-colonel in 1779, and 
commanded the escort of W'ashington when 
he bade farewell to the army. 

His commander. Colonel Brooks (after- 
wards Governor of Massachusetts), wrote 
a letter in 1814, in which he says, "In 
September, 1776, at White Plains, General 
Hull (then captain) acted under my im- 
mediate orders, and was detached from 
the line to oppose a body of Light Infantry 
and Yagers advancing on the left flank of 
the American army. His orders were ex- 
ecuted with promptitude, gallantry, and 
effect. Though more than double his 
number, the enemy was compelled to re- 
treat, and the left of the American line 
enabled to pass the Bronx." 

He was then hardly more than a boy, 
twenty-three years old, fresh from college 
and the study of law. In the brief memoirs 
he has left of his Revolutionary life, he 
mentions this action in the abstract and 
dignified manner which was then supposed 
to be the proper style for history. In fact, 
had it not been for Colonel Brooks, we 
should not have known that he commanded 
this body, for he does not even mention 
himself. Oh, if he, and the other young 
heroes of that time had only told us of 
their feelings on being suddenly called to 
such important duties; if they had only 
relinquished the abstract formal narrative 
and given us pictures of the looks, dress, 
behavior of the soldiers; had only con- 
descended to paint the details and add the 
color which so enliven modern history! 
But such was not the style of writing they 
had learned at college from Hume and 
Lord Kames. This was the first time that 
he had stood with his regiment to see a 
British army marching to attack them, 
and his MSS. glow for a moment with the 
admiration he felt as a young soldier for 
the splendid military equipments and dis- 
cipline of the enemy. He speaks of "the 
magnificent appearance" of the British 
troops; of the glitter of their polished arms 
under the bright autumnal sun; of their 
rich uniforms and equipage. So the boy 



captain stood with his poorly dressed pro- 
vincials to receive the volleys of grape and 
chain shot from the advancing foe, looking 
down on them from Chatterton's hill, till 
he was called to lead the body which was 
to oppose the force trying to turn the 
American left. All he says of this is: "It 
was promptly done, with much order and 
regularity; and, after a sharp conflict, the 
object was completely attained"; merely 
adding that "his regiment had the honor 
of receiving the personal thanks of \\'ash- 
ington after the engagement." But of the 
glow of satisfaction and pride which he 
must have felt in listening to those words 
of praise from his great commander he 
carefully says nothing. 

The next little touch of reality which 
breaks out from his memoir is concerning 
the fatigues of the soldiers at Trenton and 
Princeton. He was one of those com- 
manders who made the sufferings of his 
soldiers his own. On leaving the high- 
lands of New York to join General Wash- 
ington in Pennsylvania, he says that he 
found his company were nearly worn out; 
their clothes were wretched; they had not 
been paid; yet they were patient, patriotic, 
and willing to serve on without compen- 
sation. During their march they slept on 
the cold ground, though it was December, 
and that without covering. It was a bit- 
terly cold Christmas night when Washing- 
ton crossed the Delaware to Trenton. 
There was a driving storm of snow and 
sleet, and the ice was running in the river. 
The storm continued all night, and when 
the troops were halted they were so fa- 
tigued that they fell asleep as they stood 
in their ranks, and could with difficulty be 
awakened. In the action which followed, 
Captain Hull acted as lieutenant-colonel. 
As soon as the battle had been fought and 
won, the army marched back with their 
prisoners and the artillery and military 
stores they had taken. Nearly all that 
night was spent in recrossing the Dela- 
ware. After gaining the other side, our 
young captain marched his troops to a 
farmer's house to get them some refresh- 
ment and rest. "After my men had been 
accommcdated," says he, "I went into a 
room where a number of officers were sit- 
ting round a table, with a large dish of 
hasty-pudding in its centre. I sat down, 
procured a spoon, and began to eat. Wiile 
eating I fell from my chair to the floor, 
overcome with sleep; and in the morning, 



MEMORABILIA 



43 



when I awoke, the spoon was fast clinched 
in my hand." Happ)- days of youth, when 
no hardship or fatigue can prevent blessed 
sleep from coming to seal up the eye and 
give rest to the brain! 

The waking of the boy-soldier from this 
sleep on the floor was followed two days 
after by an agreeable incident. Washing- 
ton, whose eye was everywhere, had prob- 
ably noticed Hull's good behavior in this 
action. The day before the march to 
Princeton, one of Washington's aids came 
to Captain Hull's tent, and said, "Captain, 
the Commander-in-chief wishes to see 
you." 

The young soldier went, we may suppose, 
with some trepidation, to the general's 
quarters. Washington looked at him, and 
said, "Captain Hull, you are an officer, 
I believe, in the Connecticut line." 

Hull bowed, and General Washington 
went on. "I wish to promote you and I 
have the power to do so. But for that 
purpose I must transfer you to the Massa- 
chusetts line, since there is no vacancy in 
yours. If you are willing, I will appoint 
you major in the Eighth Massachusetts." 

Hull thanked his general warmly for 
this mark of favor, and said, "All I wish, 
General, is to serve my country where I 
can do it best; and I accept the promotion 
gratefully." 

He was then appointed to command a 
detachment to watch the approach of Corn- 
wallis, and to detain him as long as pos.si- 
ble while Washington was fortifying him- 
self beyond the little creek, behind which 
he concealed his rapid night march upon 
Princeton. After serving in these two 
battles he was sent to Massachusetts to 
recruit his regiment. Having recruited 
three hundred men, he was then ordered 
to join General St. Clair's army at Ticon- 
deroga. 'WTien General St. Clair evacu- 
ated that post an outcry of reproach went 
up against him from all quarters, though 
this event probably caused the final sur- 
render of Burgo)'ne. IMajor Hull, satis- 
fied of the injustice of these censures on 
his commander, wrote a letter to a friend 
in Connecticut during the retreat — the 
stump of a tree serving him for a table — 
defending the course of St. Clair. Major 
Hull was then sent Vith his regiment under 
General Arnold to relieve Fort Stanwix 
on the ^Mohawk Ri^•er. After this work 
had been accomplished, Arnold and his 
troops rejoined the army of Gates at Sara- 



toga, and Major Hull commanded detach- 
ments in the battles which compelled the 
surrender of Burgoyne. In one of these 
battles, when he drove the enemy from 
their post with the bayonet, his detachment 
lost one hundred and fifty men out of three 
hundred. He commanded the rear-guard 
in Schuyler's retreat from Port Edward, 
and was constantly engaged with the ad- 
vanced troops of Burgoyne. He com- 
manded a volunteer corps on the 19th of 
September. His detachment, by charging 
the enemy with the bayonet at a critical 
moment, aided in the repulse of Burgoyne 
on that day. In the battle of the 7th of 
October Major Hull commanded the ad- 
vanced guard. At the final surrender of 
BurgovTie, he says, "I was present when 
they marched into our camp, and no words 
can e.xpress the deep interest felt by every 
American heart. Nor could we help feel- 
ing sympathy for those who had so bravely 
opposed us." 



In 1848, long after the death of General 
Hull and his wife, and when the last of his 
family had moved from the homestead and 
left it' unoccupied, I penetrated one summer 
afternoon into the old upper garret of the 
house, seeking for papers to help me in 
mv task of writing a book on the campaign 
of' 181 2. I founci there a trunk which had 
evidently not been opened or examined for 
many years. It was filled with hies of 
letters closely packed together, many of 
which had Jaeen received by my grand- 
father during the War of Independence. 
There were four letters from General Wash- 
ington himself, and numerous others from 
Lincoln, Knox, Steuben, George Clinton, 
Lord StirUng, Jefferson, Madison, Monroe, 
Robert Morris, Aaron Burr, General Heath; 
with mihtary commissions, and passports 
for travelling in Europe, from Governors 
Hancock and Samuel Adams. Some of 
these I took, to aid me in my work; but, 
being too absurdly conscientious, I left the 
rest, and they were after\vard carried away 
by some unknown persons. Let us hope 
that, since they cannot be in my collection 
of autographs, they may adorn that of 
some other more enthusiastic collector. 

Miss Sarah Freeman Clarke, sister of 
Rev. James Freeman Clarke, and a grand- 
daughter of General Hull, writes in 1895: — 

The place was the paradise of my child- 
hood and of mv brothers, as well as my 



44 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON 



cousins, and the joy of our vacations was 
to get there as soon as possible after the 
school dismissal of Saturda}'. I remember 
one of these Saturday endings of school 
for the holidays when I with my brothers 
and some cousins walked from Boston to 
the farm, rather than to wait for the Mon- 
day coach which at that time was the bi- 
weekly method of getting there. Every 
part of the farm as well as everything 
growing there is familiar to my memory 
now. We were sure of a welcome, how- 
ever numerous we might be. When all 
the grandchildren were there, mattresses 
were spread on the floor of one of the large 
chambers, and so a bed was made large 
enough to hold us all, and a delightful op- 
portunity for pillow-tights ensued. I need 
not say how much I enjoy the recollection. 

My grandfather's delight in his grand- 
children and theirs in him were equal. 
He not only treated them with loving kind- 
ness, but with a courtesy that was the more 
delightful to them because it is seldom 
accorded to the little folks. I remember one 
Thanksgiving Day, how he said to my little 
brother, who on that day wore his first 
trousers, "Why, William! I am so glad 
you have come; you know we could not 
have had Thanksgiving without you!" 
and the child's eyes opened wide to find 
himself of such consequence. 

You may imagine the way he was always 
contriving pleasure for us. He would take 
us in the hay cart to the woods to spend 
the day, and leave us with our luncheon 
and berry baskets, till we should be sent 
for at night. What felicity it was to pass 
the whole long day in the woods. And 
I can see him now carrying his biggest 
watermelon and a train of children fol- 
lowing him, to be fed with the generous 
fruit. ^ . . 

Sarah Freeman Clarke. 
Marietta, Georgia. 

The big elm south of the house Jjrought 
this letter also, from Miss Clarke : — 



Somewhere about the years i8i8 or 1820, 
a high wind broke one of the branches of 
this elm, which was then supposed to be a 
hundred years old. The big limb fell on 
the roof of the house and damaged that. 
It was decided in family council that the 
dear old elm was a dangerous neighbor, 
and that nothing short of its mutilation 



would make the house safe. This was a 
sad day for us all, for the thing was done 
immediately. The stump of the broken 
limb was sawed off, and then all the other 
limbs, and the tall melancholy-looking 
stump alone remained, taller than the house. 
The next year green shoots came out all 
over it, so that it looked like a monstrously 
tall bush, very awkward and ugly; but 
year by year, according to the law of the 
survival of the fittest, a law not yet pro- 
mulgated, the larger shoots increased in 
size, till they became branches, while the 
feebler ones died off. 

I remember noticing, after a great many 
years, that the tree was again something 
more like a tree and that its limbs were 
growing again. Perhaps this harsh treat- 
ment strengthened the tree, which I was so 
happy to see once more symmetrical and 
beautiful. 

I notice that the curves of the limbs 
are not exactly the same as those of an 
elm in its natural growth. This tree is 
now, my brother Sam says, in the second 
class of large New England elms. I have 
no doubt it will live to be the largest of all. 
It has its tradition, like so many other elms, 
of having begun life as a riding switch, 
which the rider, returning home, stuck care- 
fully into the ground. This rider must 
have been Joseph Fuller, the father of 
Abraham Fuller, who was the father of 
Sarah Fuller Hull, and who was my great- 
great-grandfather. I remember hearing 
my grandmother tell the story. 

S.AR.AH Freeman Clarke. 

.\UGUST 31st, 1879. 

Nov. 5th, 1S9S. 
I measured the old elm, in front of the 
library, and found that at three feet from 
the ground (that is to its solid trunk) the 
elm was nineteen feet three inches (19 ft. 
3 in-)- 

William Claflin. 



LETTER TO GENERAL HULL 
FROM HIS SON 

Sunday May i6th 1810— Springfield 
My dear Sir, — I arrived here yesterday 
and shall march in about 2 hours for Pitts- 
field. Great attention has been shown my 
Detachment — my men have been very 
orderly and have the reputation of being 



MEMORABILIA 



45 



the best detachment that has passed this 
road. I have treated them with great 
Hberty but at the same time with that dig- 
nity so necessary to enforce obedience to 
orders. They appear to be very much 
attached to me and one and all have so- 
licited my interest to be attached to my 
company on my arrival at Head Quarters. 
I have a very valuable companion and 
oiScer in Mr. Gleason. His devotion to 
his duty and the uprightness of his con- 
duct will ever assure him a welcome re- 
ception as the Officer and the gentleman. 
:Mr. Lincoln shew me great attention in 
Worcester and enquired particularly after 
you and the family. He is one of the 
senators from that county, and stands at 
the head of his Profession. I had the 
pleasure of meeting my valuable friends 
^Marshall and Miss Binney at Worcester. 
My feet were so much blistered that I was 
obliged to send for a surgeon to lance them, 
and both necessity and inclination obliged 
me to take the stage for about sixteen 
miles, when I overtook that Detachment, 
bid farewell to my friends, put myself at 
the head of my brave fellows, where I have 
and shall continue, untill I resign my trust 
to a superior. God grant you health and 
happiness. My good mother and sisters 
remember me affectionately to. 
Affectionately 

Your son 

A. F. Hull. 
I shall write you again at Pittsfield. 



CONSTITUTION OF THE NEWTON 

TEMPERANCE SOCIETY AND 

LYCEUM 

.'\dopted Jan. i, 1827. Revised Jan. i, 1829. 
PREAMBLE 

Believing that Intemperance is produc- 
tive of more human misery and moral deg- 
radation than any other, or all other vices 
combined; and that this most appalling 
of earthly calamities, is but the legitimate 
fruit of what ourselves, in common with a 
vast majority of the most valuable citizens 
of this highly privileged land, have prac- 
tised and termed the "reasonable and neces- 
sary use of ardent spirits"; 

Believing that "man cannot Hve to him- 
self alone," and that every individual, how- 



ever insignificant or uninfluential, may 
exert some influence upon others by his 
example, and is accountable to God and 
the community for all the evil consequences 
of that e.xample; and believing that asso- 
ciated is uniformly more successful than 
individual effort, we hereby form ourselves 
into an association for the promotion of 
temperance. 

The main object of this Society, is not 
the reformation of drunkards. The habit- 
ual drunkard's example does compara- 
tively nothing to tempt, but much to deter 
the rising generation from its imitation. 
We are, however, fully aware that the 
drunkard inflicts upon his affectionate wife 
and innocent children a weight of wo, not 
to be told or conceived, and sufficient to 
justify the unceasing labor of a whole 
community to remove. — But, at the same 
time, we feel that a whole community may 
labour with untiring zeal and perseverance 
and accomplish hterally nothing in this 
work. And were we able to remove from 
our mortified sight the drunkard's ex- 
ample, and relieve all the discouraged wives 
and humbled children, from that horrid 
weight of wo, which is sinking them into 
the earth; even then we should do nothing 
that death would not, in a very short time, 
accomplish without us. Indeed, the "ter- 
rible ravages of this sin are but streams 
issuing from the fountain of habitual mod- 
erate drinking"; so that the reformation 
of ever\- drunkard in the town, would not 
arrest, for a single moment, the progress of 
the many-headed monster. The e.xample 
of the daily "reasonable" draughts of too 
many of our most influential men, so long 
as such men continue to exhibit such an 
e.xample, will continue producing succes- 
sive crops of drunkards, to blast our moral 
welfare, and multiply widows, orphans 
and paupers amongst us. 

"To warn the temperate; to sound an 
alarm to the thinking; to stand between 
the living and the dead, is the purpose of 
this association." — And for the accomplish- 
ment of this object, we mutually bind our- 
selves to a rigid observance of the following 

RULES AND REGULATIONS 

I. The stile or name of this Associa- 
tion, shall be the "Newton Temperance 
Society and Lyceum," and its first and 
most prominent Article shall be, that its 



46 



THE IMIRROR OF NEWTON 



members totally relinquish the use of ar- 
dent spirit except as medicine. 

II. Members of this Association hereby 
agree to refrain from inviting others to the 
use of ardent spirit at their social visits 
or entertainments, and from furnishing it 
(except as medicine) to those whom they 
may employ. 



XI. A Savings Institution shall be con- 
nected with this Society, the object of which 
is to afford members or their families who 
are desirous of saving their money, a safe, 
and profitable mode of investment, and to 
encourage them to the practice of prudence, 
industry and economy. 

[One other rule follows, with fourteen 
more rules appended in regard to the 
Savings Institution.] 

Officers of the Society for 1827: John 
Kenrick Esq. President; Capt. Samuel 
Hyde, V. Prest.; Deacon Joel Fuller, 
Ephraim Jackson 2nd, Seth Davis, In- 
crease S. Davis, Marshall S. Rice, Direc- 
tors; Dea. Elijah D. Woodward, Treas.; 
W'illiam Jackson, Secretary. 



OUR POSTAL FACILITIES FIFTY 
YEARS AGO 

Washington, March 2nd, 1853. 
Hox. Wm. J.\ckson. 

Dear Sir, — All difi&culties were overcome 
in regard to a Post Office at Newtonville, 
until the contract Clerk reported that the 
train which brought the mail from Boston 
does not stop at Newtonville. If this be 
so, then there is an end to 3'our applica- 
tion, because the department will not, per- 
haps cannot, make a new contract with the 
company to stop at a new place. 

If the train which carries the mail does 
stop at Newtonville, then if you will send 
on a certificate to that effect from the com- 
pany to make it authentic, you can have 
the office probably. Mr. S. D. Jacobs, 
2nd Assistant Postmaster General, gives 
me encouragement of this if he is in office 
when the evidence is presented. 

Please send to him, as I shall not be 
here. The sooner }'ou send the better your 
chance. Yours very truly 

Horace Mann. 



THE EDUCATIONAL LIFE OF NEWTON 

BY WALLACE C. BOYDEN 




N the seal of our fair city 
is pictured what may 
jjroperly be styled the first 
leathering for educational 
purposes on the territory 
of the present City of 
Newton. Under the arch- 
ing trees of the primeval forest, on the sunny 
slope of Nonantum Hill, beside the pictur- 
esque wigwam of the native American, 
and within sound of a bubbling spring of 
clear water, a band of red men are gathered 
on October 28, 1646, in stoical silence, to 
listen to the white preacher from Roxbur}', 
John Eliot, while he unfolds to them in 
their own language the truths of eternal 
life. 

It is a far cry from this first gathering, 
in its simple natural setting, two hundred 
and sixty years ago, to the present, when 
seven thousand children are assembled in 
twenty-three buildings valued at $1,345,- 
280, and pursuing their studies forty weeks 
each year for fourteen years, in the free 
public schools of the city. The steps by 



which this progress has l^een made can 
only be outlined in the briefest way within 
the limits of this article. 

The town was settled very graduall}', no 
large number of families coming at any 
time. At the end of twenty-five years, in 
1664, there were only twenty householders, 
and in 1688, when it was separated from 
Cambridge, forty-nine families comprised 
the total population. During this period 
the school privileges of the children of 
Cambridge Village (Newton) were such 
as were provided by the town of Cambridge 
under the Massachusetts law, which re- 
quired every town containing fifty house- 
holders to appoint a teacher "to teach all 
such children as shall resort to him to read 
and write," and every town containing one 
hundred families "to set up a grammar 
school, whose master should be able to in- 
struct youth so far as they may be fitted 
for the University." It is certain that 
Cambridge complied with this law, for a 
writer in 1643 remarks, "By the side of 
the CoUedge is a faire Grammar Schoole for 



THE EDUCATIONAL LIFE OF NEWTON 



47 



the training up of young schollars, and tit- 
ting them for Academicall learning, that 
still, as they were judged ripe, they might 
be received into the coUedge." It was a 
good school, for the record further states, 
"Of this schoole Master Corlet is Air., 
who has very well approved himselfe for 
his abilities, dexterity and painfulnesse in 
teaching and education of the youth under 
him." 

This school was poorly attended, and 
doubtless its distance from Cambridge 
Village prevented the attendance of any 
children from that part of the town. 
There are no records of any dame or writ- 
ing teachers for these children at this time, 
and it is probable that they received only 
such schooling as educated parents were 
able and inclined to give in their homes 
in individual cases. We may very nat- 
urally suppose that, owing to the rigors and 
hardships of frontier life, many settlers 
neglected the ciliu -.lioii of their children. 
For some years alter the separation of 
Newton from Cambridge, no school build- 
ing was provided by the town, so that if 
the children were educated collectively, 
it was in a room furnished by some citizen 
in his own house. The following ex- 
tracts from the town records give an in- 
teresting ghmpse into the conditions of 
those early days. 

May 7,' 1698.— "Then voted that the 
town shall build a schoolhouse as soon as 
they can." 

March 6, 1699. — "Voted that the town 
will build a schoolhouse the dimensions 
sixteen foot long and fourteen foot wide, 
and that it shall be finished by the last of 
November, 1699." 

Jan. I, 1700. — "At a town meeting, 
upon due warning given January ye i, 1700, 
the selectmen and Inhabitants did hiere 
and agree with John Staples to continue 
the keeping of the school four days in a 
week, until March, and to have two shil- 
lings per day." 

March 4, 1700. — "Voted that the school- 
house be set in the highway, neer to Joseph 
Bartlet's, and that it be finished by the i of 
October, 1700." 

(Note. Joseph Bartlet's house was just 
north of Institution Hill, in Newton Centre.) 
At a town meeting, November 25, 1700, 
"the Selectmen and Inhabitants did agree 
with John Staples to keep school one month 
4 days in a week for one pound fore shillings, 
and allso voted that the Selectmen shall 



hire a roome or place to keep school in, 
and shall agree with John Staples or some 
other to keep and continue the school till 
the town meeting of election in March." 

March 10, 1701. — "Voted that those that 
send schoUers to school shall jiay 3 pence 
per week for those tliat leni to read, and 4 
pence per week for tlio>e (hat lern to Syphcr 
and write, and that they nia\- send scholers 
to cither school." 

The two schoolhouses here referred to 
were built soon after, in accordance with 
the vote of the town, "one to l)e set at the 
meeting house" (which stood in the now 
old cemetery on Centre Street), "and the 
dimensions 17 foot square beside chimney 
roome," and the other in the southerly part 
of the town near Oke Hill, "16 foot square 
beside chimney roome." The vote further 
pro^•ided that "there shall be one school- 
master whoe shall teach two-thirds of the 
time at the School at the Meeting House, 
and one-third of the time at the School at 
Oke Hill." 

It will be noted that the schools at this 
time were not free, as we understand the 
term. They were open to all children, but 
parents had to pay tuition for each child 
who attended. The amount of the tuition 
was usually determined by the vote of the 
town, and any deficiency in the master's 
pay was made up from the town treasury. 
There was no regular system in the man- 
agement of the school in these early years, 
the arrangements being made from ye:;r to 
vear by the people in the town meeting. 
Newton was one of the earliest towns to 
elect a school committee. The records 
of the meeting of March 4, 1706, show that 
Captain Isaac Williams, Lieutenant John 
Mason, and Abraham Jackson were ap- 
pointed "a Committy to take care to pro- 
vide a schoolmaster for the town this year." 
These men constituted the tirst school com- 
mittee, and after this a eommittee was 
probably elected annually. Their duties 
at first consisted in hiring a schoolmaster, 
but at times they shared that duty with the 
selectmen. The membership of the com- 
mittee was constantly changing, so that 
for many years there could be and was no 
continuity in the conduct of the schools. 
Yet in all the early action of the town there 
can be seen a realizing sense of the im- 
portance of education and a definite pur- 
pose to continually improve the school ad- 
vantages for their children. 
"As is the teacher, so is the school," 



48 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON 



was eminently true in those days when there 
was no course of study and no supervision 
of schools. John Staples, the first school- 
master in Newton, was a weaver by trade, 
who came to Newton in 1688 and lived 
here till his death in 1740 at the age of 
eighty-two. He was a deacon of the church 
for many years, selectman for eight years, 
and town clerk for twenty-one years, a 
man much respected and esteemed, and 
his name appears often in connection with 
positions of responsibility. He was there- 
fore a man of note in the town, and of high 
character, who may be taken as a type of 
the schoolmaster whom the people of that 
time desired, and who enriched from his 
own personality the course of study, which 
nominally consisted of reading, writing, 
and ciphering. 

As the population increased and was 
scattered over a large territory, the num- 
ber and location of the schools became an 
embarrassing and difficult question, and 
for several years about 1720 many exciting 
and stirring meetings of the town were held 
over the matter. In May, 1720, it was 
voted to have one schoolhouse in the town 
and "to grant the remote parts of town a 
consideration for schooling among them- 
selves." A committee appointed at the 
meeting reported in December, 1720, a site 
for the schoolhouse, an allowance of twelve 
pounds to the remote parts of the town 
for schooling, and stated that there were 
"sixty families that are two and a half 
miles from ye meeting house and about 
forty families that are about three miles 
from the meeting house." The town ac- 
cepted the report and passed votes in ac- 
cordance with the recommendations. But 
three months later, in March, 1721, they 
successively voted not to make any allow- 
ance to the remote parts of the town, not to 
hold a school at the schoolhouse by the 
meeting house, and not to hold a school at 
the schoolhouse in the south part of the 
town. It was only when Samuel Miller 
of the West Parish offered a room in his 
house free of expense to the town, that they 
voted to hold a school in the house of ^Mr. 
Miller "for the present or ensuing year." 
This arrangement for a school in the west 
part of the town did not prove satisfactory, 
and at the next March meeting it was voted 
that the school should be kept two thirds 
of the time at the meeting-house and one 
third of the time at the south end of the 
town. 



The excitement over school affairs ran 
high in 1723. In iMarch the town voted 
that the school should be kept in three 
places, "half the time in the west part, 
quarter at the north and quarter at the 
south"; in October they changed this plan; 
and again in December, when they voted 
money for a schoolhouse near Samuel 
Miller's, and that the inhabitants of the 
town should have the privilege of sending 
to either school they chose, or to all three. 
This apparently settled the difficulty, and 
the ve.xed question rested for some years. 

On December 4, 1751, the next advance 
was made, when "the question was put 
whether there should be two more school- 
masters provided to keep English schools 
in town, that there may be a school kept 
at each school House untill the anniver- 
sary in March next, and it passed in the 
affirmative." Thus were inaugurated 
winter schools, which were soon increased 
to three in number, and regularly voted 
year after year. 

About this time the term Grammar 
School begins to appear in the records, but 
it is not certain that the term is used in the 
same sense as in the law passed by the 
Great and General Court in 1647, which 
calls for a school in which youth may Ijc 
fitted for the University. Just when such 
a school was started in Newton is unknown. 
In the records of March, 1761, we find the 
following: — 

''Voted, that fifty pounds of the Town 
rate shall and hereby is appropriated for 
the Grammar school. 

" Voted, that if the said fifty pounds shall 
not be expended for the support of the 
Grammar School, the remainder shall be 
laid out in other schoohng at the discretion 
of the Committee that is to provide the 
Grammar School master." 

It is likely that the latter course was 
pursued, for the next year we read, "The 
Town was presented for not setting up a 
grammar school, and the selectmen were 
chosen to defend the Town against it, at 
the Court." A httle later in the records, — 
"Voted that the Grammar School be kept 
at the house of Edward Durant, until 
further order of the Town." This was 
changed in 1767 to "at such schoolhouse as 
the committee shall think to be proper." 
It may be inferred, therefore, that at this 
time the town had both English and Gram- 
mar schools which satisfied the law. 



THE EDUCATIONAL LIFE OF NEWTON 



49 



The year 1763 seems to have been note- 
worthy as a year of expansion and special 
interest in school affairs. The school com- 
mittee was increased from three to five 
members, and the following vote adopted 
after much discussion of its various items: 
"Voted, to have four districts and four 
schools, beside the grammar school, and 
all to be provided with wood. Centre, £ig, 
<)s., twenty weeks and two days; north- 
west, £1^, lis., fourteen weeks and two 
days; Oak-hill, ;£io, los., ten weeks and 
six days; south-west, ;^6, 10^., si.x weeks and 
five days." The total expenditure was £$0, 
and the total time fifty-two weeks, one day. 
In 1766 the town "voted £16 to employ a 
schoolmistress," the first record of a 
woman teacher in Newton. The same 
year the number of districts was increased 
to "five school districts and five school 
houses, and one committee man for each 
school." In 1808 the town was divided 
into seven school wards, namely, — east, 
west, north, south, southwest. Centre, 
and the Falls. In 1819 a northwest dis- 
trict was formed; in 1S24 an Upper Falls 
district added, and subsequently the num- 
ber enlarged until the statistics of 1839 
show eleven schools in the town. 

On May 12, 1817, a committee consisting 
of three ministers and one from each school 
district made a report to the town contain- 
ing eleven recommendations "for the better 
regulation and government of the schools," 
which was adopted almost in its entirety. 
There is not space to give the whole re- 
port, but the following extracts will be in- 
teresting as indicating the prevalent opin- 
ions of that time as to what constituted a 
good school: — 

"i. For the purpose of exciting in the 
minds of the scholars a reverence for the 
Word of God, and of aiding them in read- 
ing it with propriety, it is recommended 
that a portion of it be publicly and daily 
read in the morning in each school by the 
Preceptor or Preceptress, and that the 
scholars shall read the same after him or 
her." 

"3. That the New Testament be one of 
the standard reading books in all the schools 
in this town. And your committee do in 
a special manner recommend Cummings' 
New Testament, designed for schools." 

"6. That the town recommend to every 
religious teacher of the schools to open 
and close them with prayer." 



"7. That every master be desired to 
comply with the laws of the Commonwealth, 
which require him to give moral and re- 
ligious instruction to his pupils." 

"4. That Murray's English Reader or 
Lvman's American Reader be recom- 
mended for instruction in reading in the 
schools of this town." 

"5. That whereas it appears upon in- 
quir}- that Walker's Dictionary has been a 
growing and general standard for pro- 
nunciation in the Colleges of the State, 
your committee recommend Walker's 
Pronouncing Dictionary," etc. And then 
they add the interesting comment, "Your 
committee, however, in recommending 
Walker's Dictionary, would be understood 
as having reference principally to the ac- 
cent, and not as deciding the propriety or 
impropriety of pronouncing virtue, nature, 
creature, — virtshu, natshure, cretshure, — 
and a few other words." 

"11. We recommend renewed attention 
on the part of the town, to a former vote 
of the town, relative to the Committeemen 
of the several schools acting in concert, not 
separately, in employing instructors." 

This last recommendation seems to 
point to a growing movement, which cul- 
minated in 1821, when the town voted that 
"the several school districts be allowed to 
apply their proportion of school money for 
schooling as they may think best, and to 
manage their schools in the same way." 

Thus the town was disintegrated into 
districts with their petty jealousies, which 
have interfered with the normal growth of 
the town in its larger interests. This state 
continued for some years, until gradually 
the advancement of intelligence and cult- 
ure in the community demanded more 
liberal views concerning education, and 
that Newton should emulate its neighbor- 
ing city, Boston, in providing graded 
schools, grammar and high schools for pre- 
paring boys for college, and giving a 
broader education to those who are to go 
into business and public life. 

An effort looking to the establishing of 
one or more free high schools was made 
in 1838, when the report of a committee 
was ordered to be printed and distributed 
to every family in the town. Another long 
report was made in 1849, but nothing defi- 
nite was accomplished until in 1852 a com- 
mittee of eighteen, headed by Dr. Barnas 
Sears, Secretary of the State Board of Ed- 



50 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON 



ucation, reported, recommending the abol- 
ishing of the district schools, and the es- 
tablishment of a system of graded schools, 
and "one school embracing high school 
studies for a term of ten months, or a larger 
number of schools having such studies an 
aggregate period of twelve months, and to 
embrace within these schools the common 
studies usually assigned to grammar 
schools." 

The report was adopted, the district 
schools were abolished, graded schools es- 
tablished, and a new building erected at 
Newton Centre in which was begun, under 
Mr. John W. Hunt as instructor, the High 
Grammar school as outlined in the report. 
This school was a success, and opened the 
way to better things. The town was di- 
vided into six school districts as follows: — 
No. I, Newton Centre, including Oak Hill; 
No. 2, Upper Falls; No. 3, Lower Falls; 
No. 4, West Newton, including Auburn- 
dale; No. 5, Newtonville; No. 6, Newton 
Corner: Each district had grammar and 
primary grades, and Newton Corner an in- 
termediate grade also. The school year 
was arranged to cover forty- two weeks, di- 
vided into three terms, the first term to 
begin the third Monday in April. Soon 
after a High School department was es- 
tablished at West Newton, and a little later 
at Newton Corner. 

In 1859, by vote of the town, March 7, 
a "pure high school" was established, to be 
located at Newtonville, "on a lot of land 
ne.xt to the entrance to ^Ir. Claflin's ground 
on Walnut Street." 

Dr. Henry Bigelow, chairman of the 
school committee and a great power in 
shaping school affairs at that time, re- 
ceived the following interesting letter (never 
before published) from Horace :Mann, 
President of Antioch College, and former 
Secretary of the Massachusetts Board of 
Education. 



DocT. H. Bigelow, 

My dear Sir, — Your inquiry respecting the ex- 
pediency of establishing a High School at so great 
a distance from a majority of its pupils, I will 
reply to with pleasure;" not at length, for I have 
not tiine, but according to the best of my judg- 
ment. First, the inquiry docs not relate to all 
the children belonging to a District, but only to 
those who are sufficiently advanced in age to be 
members of a High School, — probably none 
below thirteen, and a majority of them equal to 
fifteen. Second, will it be injurious or beneficial 
to scholars of such an age to walk to school under 



all ordinary circumstances, a distance of from 
one to two miles? — at the e.xtent, four miles a 
day taken in doses of two miles each. My ideas 
respecting Physiology and Hygiene would lead 
me to prescribe such a walk, or its equivalent 
in e.xercise of some kind, for every pupil over 
twelve years of age. You need not be told, no 
medical man, no observing man, tho' he be non- 
medicus, needs to be told, that our youth are 
suffering from the disproportionate demands 
made upon their brain and nervous system, as 
compared with their muscular. Body and limbs 
are of little value without brain. Brain is of as 
little without body and limbs. The mind cannot 
digest knowledge unless the body can digest food, 
and physical health bears the most intimate re- 
lation to mental and moral. T should hesitate 
to take advice from rl.i. i..|-, i,iv\,i-, .ir I'liiii-lcr 
who had been l^'ii^ li\ p' iJu 'Im'! i.n .ir linhiiMi 11. 

from passive,- -excrrise which originates in the 
brain and is transmitted thro' the motory nerves 
of the spinal cord and does not originate in horse- 
flesh or steam power, to be transmitted through 
the spring seat of carriage or car, — this kind of 
exercise is the indispensable, inescapable con- 
dition and prerequisite of Health. That this is 
true doctrine I have no doubt, though I have 
some doubt whether you will find the community 
ready to adopt it and act upon it. Probably they 
will sacrifice a few more generations in their 
blind idolatry to error; but that is no reason why 
vou and I -liouM not strive to stay these sacri- 
fices a. > l.M :■-. ur .an. 

Youi> lor lliakh and Temperance and Obedi- 
ence to all God's Laws, 

Horace M.\x.n-. 



P. S. I did not deem it necessary to make special 
exceptions for great inclemencies of weather, — 
storms, snows, &c., common judgment and pru- 
dence will provide for these. 

There was considerable question on the 
part of many as to the expediency of estab- 
lishing the High School, and the committee 
of that day spoke of it as "an e.xperiment, 
which they wiU continue to watch anxiously 
yet hopefully, leaving the results to speak 
for themselves." 

It opened with seventy-five pupils, all 
over fifteen years of age, and two instruc- 
tors. It evidently met a real need of the 
community, and appealed to the intelli- 
gence, interest, and pride of the people, 
for it steadily grew and has maintained a 
high standard of work which has placed it 
in the front rank among public high schools 
and private secondary schools. Under the 
leadership of an able line of principals, 
with the instruction fiu-nished by an effi- 
cient corps of assistants, growth and prog- 
ress in the size and work of the school, and 
consequent enlargement of its buildings, 
has been the story of the years since its 
establishment, until now its present modern 



52 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON 



building, one of the finest in the state, 
erected in 1898, is inadequate to accommo- 
date its nearly a thousand pupils and forty- 
five instructors. The following is the list 
of principals of the school: J. N. Beals, 
1859-60; T. D. Adams, 1860-67; E. B. 
Hale, 1867-68; Francis A. Waterhouse, 
1868-80; Edward H. Cutler, 1880-88; 
Edward J. Goodwin, 1888-97; Enoch C. 
Adams since 1897. 

We have traced the growth of the differ- 
ent grades of schools. A word may be in 
order as to the way in which the school 
buildings kept pace with this progress, and 
enlarged with the expansion of the schools. 
From the early records quoted, we saw that 
the first buildings were si.xteen and seven- 
teen feet square. Smith, in his history 
of Newton, tells us that "in 1763 a brick 
building 14 by 16 feet square and chimney 
room was built in the south-west district. 
The house was covered with a hip roof 
coming together at a point in the centre; 
a fireplace about si.x feet wide and four feet 
deep, with a large chimney, in which they 
burned wood four feet long, occupied one 
side of the room. This house became very 
much dilapidated, and the roof so leaky 
in its later years, that it was not uncom- 
mon for the teacher to huddle the scholars 
together under an umbrella or two, to pre- 
vent their getting wet during the summer 
showers." 

.^n amusing story is told of the pranks 
of the school boys in these early days. One 
roguish boy on the roof of the building 
let a hook and line down the chimney, and 
another rogue in the room fastened the hook 
into the wig of the master, when, presto, 
up the chimney went the wig! Smith 
further tells us that in the early part of the 
nineteenth century "most of the country 
schoolhouses were built from twenty-five 
to forty feet square, one story high, with 
rows of benches on either side of a wide 
alley through the middle, and a box stove 
in the middle, or an open fire at one end 
of the alley, around which the scholars 
were permitted to gather on cold days to 
warm themselves. There was an entry 
across one end to hang garments in. Many 
of them were painted red." 

In 1845 a report was made indicating 
great need of reform in school construction, 
pointing out that the floors sloped so much 
that the pupils could not stand up in their 
seats, and that the ventilation was so bad 
that after sitting with the school for an 



hour the visitor was surprised that the 
teacher could succeed at all in instruction 
or management; "for to say the least, it 
was utterly impossible for any one either 
to study or to impart instruction under 
such circumstances, vigorously." 

Accordingly in 1847 the town began 
definite work towards improving its school- 
houses. Two large double schoolhouses 
were built on the most improved plan, 
others repaired, and gradually the build- 
ings throughout the eleven districts put in 
good condition, special attention being 
paid to ventilation. 

The establishment of the graded system 
of schools in 1852 meant a reduction in the 
number of districts, and greater centraliza- 
tion of the pupils, and hence demanded 
larger school buildings. We find, there- 
fore, two-story buildings, which were con- 
sidered large for those days, erected at an 
e.xpense of about $5000 each. Since then 
there has been a constant effort to obtain 
commodious, sanitary, and architecturally 
good school buildings, and the city has 
pursued a really generous, if not far- 
sighted, policy with reference to accom- 
modating its school population properly. 
The last grammar school building, erected 
two years ago, is a brick structure containing 
fourteen class-rooms, two recitation-rooms, 
library, laboratory, and assembly hall 
seating six hundred; a tremendous advance 
over the sixteen-foot, one-story building of 
two centuries ago. 

The prominence of individual initiative 
in securing progress along various lines of 
the community life is evident even to the 
casual reader of history. Newton has 
been very fortunate in having during the 
past century an unusual number of cult- 
ured, forceful, and public-spirited men, 
interested in a practical way in its schools, 
many of them serving on its School Com- 
mittee. In 1810 Mr. Seth Davis, teaching 
in the west ward, introduced into his school 
declamation and geography, with map- 
drawing. This created a sensation, and a 
special town meeting was called to see 
whether the town would allow such a 
dangerous innovation. After a long dis- 
cussion of the demoralizing tendencies of 
the times, it was decided by a large majority 
to allow the map-drawing, but that decla- 
mation could not be permitted to continue. 
Mr. Davis, ahead of his time in matters 
of school instruction, and of a naturally 
strong will, chafed under the limitations of 



THE EDUCATIONAL EIFE OF NEWTON 



53 



such a short-sighted poUcy, and a few years 
later left the public work and established a 
private school of his own. Rev. Lyman 
Gilbert and Mr. Ebenezer Woodward, both 
teachers of successful experience, were 
leading spirits in the thirties and forties. 
In the report of 1839-40, we read, "The 
idea of having learning enough for common 
business merely should be sentenced to 
perpetual banishment. Learning in any 
of its branches can be useless to no one. 
The acquisition of knowledge is, moreover, 
a design of life. This consideration should 
be oftener present to the mind, as well as 
the moral obligation all are under to make 
the most and best of their faculties, and to 
be satisfied with no degree of attainment 
so long as a higher attainment is within 
their reach." These are pregnant words, 
full of courage in attacking a rising menace 
to the standards of the schools, and stating 
with plainness and force what should be 
aimed at in education. 

In 1844 the present Framingham State 
Normal School was mo\ed from Lexington 
to West Newton, where it occupied the 
Fuller Academy building until 1853. This 
brought to the town the Rev. Cyrus Peirce, 
the principal of the school, a man of broad 
and progressive views in education. Later 
there came also to live in West Newton 
Hon. Horace Mann, of international fame 
because of his educational work. The 
presence of these men as residents of the 
town for some years, what they stood for 
and advocated, must have had a marked 
influence in advancing the standards and 
efficiency of the schools. Furthermore in 
1848 an arrangement was made with the 
town by which the District School No. 7 
was used by the Normal School as a Model 
and Training School. This made it pos- 
sible to give a practical demonstration to 
the people of the value of these new methods 
and ideas in the school-room. Mr. Na- 
thaniel T. Allen, principal of this school, 
and Miss Electa N. Lincoln (Mrs. G. A. 
Walton), first assistant in the Normal 
School, continued their residence in the 
town, and have been effective agents in 
advancing the highest interests of public 
education during all these years to the 
present time. 

As early as 1853 the suggestion was 
made by the member of the School Com- 
mittee from Newtonville that the town 
should have a Superintendent of Schools. 



In 1866 the town voted that "the School 
Committee of Newton be authorized and 
required to appoint a Superintendent, if, 
in their judgment, it be deemed advisable," 
but the committee could not seem to find a 
satisfactory man for the $2500 appropria- 
tion. In 1870, however, a similar vote 
was passed, and the committee then elected 
Mr. Thomas Emerson of Woburn as the 
first Superintendent of Schools in Newton, 
at a salary of $3000. He proved the right 
man for the place, and at once made im- 
portant changes for the betterment of the 
schools, modifying and systematizing the 
course of study according to modern stand- 
ards, drawing up rules for the regulation of 
the schools, and showing by his efficient 
management the wisdom of creating the 
office. Since that time many of the ad- 
vances in public education, perhaps a 
majority, have been made through the in- 
itiative of the Superintendents. They have 
been men of power and broad outlook in 
the main, and the list of those who have 
served the city in this office is as follows: 
Thomas Emerson, 1871-73; Horace M. 
Willard, 1873-76; Warren Johnson, 1876- 
77; Ephraim Hunt, 1877-81; John E. 
Kimball, 1881-85; Thomas Emerson, 1885 
-90; Joseph C. Jones, 1890-91; George I. 
Aldrich, 1892-99; Albert B. Fifield, 1899- 
1903; Fred W. Atkinson, 1903-04; Frank 
E. Spaulding, since 1904. 

It would be interesting to trace the steps, 
if space permitted, leading to the intro- 
duction into the public school system of the 
city of free text-books in 1884; Kinder- 
gartens in 1893; Enghsh and Drawing 
Evening Schools; the so-called enrichment 
of the Grammar School in 1892; Manual 
Training in 1896; Vacation Schools, cared 
for by the Social Science Club for seventeen 
years, and adopted by the city in 1905; 
and Directors or Supervisors of special 
subjects, such as Music, Drawing, Writing, 
Physical Culture, Nature Study, Kinder- 
garten, and Primary Schools. Most of 
these are such recent history as to be re- 
membered by us all, and their introduction 
into the Newton schools was a part of the 
general trend of educational movement in 
the large cities or throughout the state. 

Thus has grown up a system of public 
schools in the city which has been reason- 
ably satisfactory to an intelligent, cultured, 
and rather critical community, and which 
has taken its place beside the natural 



54 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON 



beauties, fine streets, handsome residences, 
excellent churches, and many social and 
civic advantages, as one of the attractive 
features which has made the Garden City 
one of the finest suburbs of Boston. 



PRIVATE SCHOOLS 

There is very little material to be found 
concerning private schools in the eighteenth 
century. But it is reasonably certain that 
Newton had gained prominence in private 
school instruction early in its history. 
About the time that the town established 
winter schools and should have had Gram- 
mar schools, we learn from statements in 
the records that for those who desired to 
avail themselves of the opportunities for 
higher education and had the means to do 
so, there was Judge Fuller's private school 
in West Newton, where the higher branches 
were taught previous to 1760. Smith tells 
us that, "In April, 1765, Mr. Charles Pel- 
ham, from Boston, bought the homestead 
of the late Rev. John Cotton, corner of 
Centre and Cabot Streets, and opened a 
private academy in his house. He is said 
to have been a person of good education, 
and well adapted to his occupation as a 
teacher. Most of his scholars probably 
came from Boston and other towns." 

The period from 1800 to 1853 was most 
prolific in the establishment of private 
academies for boys and for girls. We can 
speak of only a few of the most prominent 
among them. The first of these was " The 
Young Ladies' Academy," Newton, pre- 
sided over by Mrs. Susannah Haswell 
Rowson, brilliant and gifted, "a popular 
authoress, actress, poet, and editor," as well 
as teacher. It is very probable that this 
was the first female seminary in the United 
States, starting about 1800 and continuing 
for twelve or fifteen years. The following 
advertisement, taken from the Columbian 
Centinel, April 15, 1807, may be of interest: 

YOUNG L.'iDIES' ACADEMY, NEWTON. 

Mrs. Rowson and Mrs. Haswell beg leave to 
inform their friends that their spring quarter will 
commence in April, and that every accommodation 
is provided for the comfort of their pupils, and 
every attention will be paid to their manners, 
morals, and improvement. The drawing will be 
taught, the ensuing season, in a new and superior 
style, Mrs. Rowson having received instruction 
lately for that purpose from a professed master 
of the art. Terms as usual. Music by Mr. G. 
Graupner. Dancing by Mr. G. Shaffer. 



Young ladies from some of the most 
distinguished families in the country at- 
tended the school, among them two daugh- 
ters of Governor Claiborne of South Caro 
lina. Mrs. Rowson is said to have been 
very dignified and highly cultivated, and 
to have paid special attention to the man- 
ners of her pupils. After leaving Newton, 
she established a similar school in Roxbury. 

Mr. Seth Davis, of whom we have spoken 
pre\iously, conducted a private school on 
\\'altham Street in ^^'est Newton from 1817 
to 1S39. He was a very able and in- 
spiring teacher, aiming to arouse in his 
pupils an enthusiasm for learning and a 
power to think clearly. Ex-Governor Ale.\- 
ander H. Rice, who fitted for college under 
liis luition, gives the following description 
of his school-room, which was constructed 
on an original plan for the purpose of se- 
curing good order easily. "The centre of 
the room was a clear space, and around the 
room ran a series of stalls, each separated 
from the next by a high partition, after the 
fashion seen in some eating houses now, 
and in each stall was a short and narrow 
seat, so that its occupant could see no fellow 
pupil, excepting on the opposite side of 
the room, or at least beyond speaking 
distance, while each and every one was 
visible to the master. I say that each one 
was visible to the master, though it is 
manifest that when seated in his chair in 
the centre of the room, the master's back 
must be toward ^onie of the stalls on one 
or more of the four sides of the room. But 
while the f;ict is reiot^nized as a physical 
necessity, it .seemed to be of no practical 
importance, for any mischievous vibration 
behind him, though as delicate as the step 
of a velvet-footed mouse, seemed to re- 
verberate upon his sensitive and expectant 
tympanum as the summons to an instan- 
taneous and whirling jump, that brought 
him, chair and all, face to face with the 
entrapped offender. The rebuke of those 
piercing gray eyes, fixed and imperturbable, 
was worse than the soundest flogging." 

Mr. Davis was assisted by his daughter 
Harriet, who was well versed in the classics 
and higher mathematics. He died in 
1888, at the advanced age of one hundred 
years and nine months. 

One of the best schools in New England 
at this time was the "Boarding School of 
Mr. Marshall S. Rice," opened by him in 
Newton Centre on the "Gibbs Place," 



THE EDUCATIONAL LIFE OF NEWTON 



55 



opposite the Congregational churcli, in 
1828, and carried on for twenty-two and a 
half years with the purpose, as he states it, 
"to train up young men and young women 
to be teachers in common schools and to 
fill important places in business." Mr. 
Rice was a man of strong, upright character, 
and great energy and decision. He was 
very ingenious in methods of arousing 
interest in study, and also in mutters of 
discipline. For instance, when pupils were 
sometimes taken suddenly ill as it came 
near the time for going to church on Sun- 
day, he was very sympathetic, took their 
word for it, and in the kindest manner put 
them to bed for the day and fed them on 
gruel. He sometimes referred cases to a 
judge and jury of pupils, who determined 
and executed the punishment. He in- 
terested his school in gardening, giving the 
pupils individual plots to cultivate with 
flowers or vegetables. The school had 
usually about thirty boarding pupils, who 
paid from $24 to $30 per quarter, and ten 
day pupils who paid $5 per quarter. The 
membership of this school was largely 
boys, and therefore, in 1831, there was 
established at Newton Centre "The New- 
ton Female Academy," which continued its 
work till 1850. The academy did excellent 
work under many of its administrations, 
though it changed principals too often for 
its best good. It attracted, however, many 
students from other parts of the town, so 
that the trustees, in 1832, "Voted, that day 
scholars at the Academy be furnished with 
dinner at the Boarding-house, if they wish 
it, at ten cents each per day." 

Judge Abraham Fuller, of whose private 
school we have already spoken, at his death 
in 1794 left a bequest of £,2>°°' "^or 'he 
purpose of laying the foundation of an 
academy in Newton." For reasons which 
we have not space to recount, the payment 
of the bequest was delayed, and it was not 
till 1832 that a building called Fuller 
Academy was erected at the corner of 
Washington and Highland Streets in West 
Newton. The academy was maintained 
for only two years, when the town decided 
to give up the undertaking, and sold the 
building. Ten years later it was purchased 
for the State Normal School, which occu- 
pied it for nine 3'ears, and subsequently it 
was for many years the home of the Allen 
School. 

In the report of a committee appointed 



to consider the matter of a high school in 
Newton, made in December, 1849, we read: 
"Your committee cannot recommend the 
establishment of such a school at this time. 
They find, however, upon inquiry, that Mr. 
Weld has established an academy in 
Auburndale, in which all the branches 
required by the law for a high school are 
taught; and that Mr. Moses Burbank has 
established a similar school in Newton 
Centre; so that those teachers will admit 
into their schools all who wish to pursue 
such studies for five months in each year, 
upon the payment by the town of twelve 
dollars for each scholar. . . . Your com- 
mittee recommend that such an arrange- 
ment be made with those gentlemen by 
the School Committee alternately." 

This is an indication that in Newton, 
as elsewhere throughout the state, during 
the first half of the nineteenth century, the 
large number and excellence of the private 
schools probably postponed for several 
decades the establishment of public high 
schools, while, on the other hand, when 
once well estakished the excellence of the 
high schools caused the gradual extinction 
of a large majority of the private academies, 
so that only a very few of the strongest 
and best have survived to tlie present time. 

Newton has two of these strong private 
schodls \vhi( h haw persisted. The first is 
" Lascll Stiniihiry jor Young Women," 
established in Auburndale in 1851, by 
Professor Edward Lasell of Williams 
College, who lived only long enough to see 
the school well started. His brother Josiah, 
and brother-in-law, George W. Briggs, then 
took up the work and carried it on till 1862, 
when Rev. C. W. Cushing became pro- 
prietor and principal. In 1873 the school 
and grounds were bought by ten men in 
Boston, who became a board of trustees for 
the school. The next year they made Mr. 
Charles C. Bragdon principal, and he has 
continued to conduct the school with signal 
ability for the past thirty-two years. The 
school has grown from twenty pupils in 
1874 to one hundred and sixty at present. 
In the early days, most of the pupils were 
day scholars. Now more than half of the 
pupils come from west of New England. 
The material equipment has been greatly 
increased several times. The seminary 
has done pioneer service in several direc- 
tions, notably in Household Science and 
Arts. Excellent departments of Household 




"lliliil '#: ^ 



THE ELIOT MEMORIAL 



57 



Economics, Music, and Art, in addition to 
the regular study courses, have been largely 
instrumental in enabling the school to fill 
a need in the education of young women. 
" The Allen English and Classical School 
oj West Newton'' was opened in 1854 by 
^[r. Nathaniel T. Allen, who had been 
jirincipal of the Model School in connec- 
tion with the State Normal School. When 
the Normal School was moved from West 
Newton, Mr. Allen was urged by "Father" 
Pierce and Mr. Horace Mann to start a 
first-class private school in the building 
which they had vacated. He associated 
with himself Messrs. George E. and James 
T. Allen, and conducted a school on pro- 
gressive lines for nearly a half century, 
making it known far and wide as an e.x- 
cellent family school for boys and girls, 
where an all-round thorough training 
could be received under most home-like 



conditions. Here the first kindergarten 
in Massachusetts was opened in 1864. 
Gymnastic apparatus was early introduced, 
and the most modern ideas in education 
were applied in the school. There have 
been more than four thousand pupils, 
coming from foreign lands as well as from 
all parts of the United States. Under 
new management it is still carrying on its 
excellent work. 

A number of other schools have been 
established since these, and continued for 
a longer or shorter time. Among those 
which are at the present time in a thriving 
condition might be named the Mt. Ida 
School for Young Ladies in Newton, the 
Fessenden School for Boys, West Newton, 
the Misses Allen's School for Girls in West 
Newton, the Waban School for Boys, the 
Froebel School, and Miss Carroll's School 
in West Newton. 



THE ELIOT MEMORIAL 

BY WILLIAM C. BATES 



OX the southern slope of Nonantum 
Hill, at the head of the valley be- 
tween the hills Nonantum and 
Waban, stands the Eliot Memorial, an or- 
namental terrace of pudding-stone and 



freestone, which was erected in 1876 to 
commemorate an historical event which 
occurred in 1646 to 1651, and made the 
location memorable for all time. The in- 
scription on the tablet of the structure is, — 



HERE 


AT 


NONAN 


TUM 


OCTOBER 28, 


1646, IN 


WABAN 


S WIGWAM, 


NEAR THl 


S SPOT. 


JOH 


M ELIOT BEGAN 


TO 


PREA 


CH THE 


GOSPEL 


TO 


THE 


ND 


lANS, 


HER 


E WAS FOUN 


DED 


THE 


FIRST 


CHRIST 


AN 


COMM 


UN 


TY OF 


IND 


ANS WITHIN 




E E 


MGLISH 


COLON 


ES. 



On the corners of the terrace, cut in the 
freestone, are allegorical carvings of arrows, 
oak-leaves, the sickle and pen, and the 
names, Heath, Shepard, Gookin, Waban. 
These were associated with the good man 
now known in history as "The Apostle 
Eliot," and were present at that memorable 
first ser\ice at Nonantum in Waban's wig- 
wam. Mr. Eliot left a record of the time, 
the place, the subject of his address to these 
humble men, who became his chief thought 
and care until his death in 1690. 

In one of the Eliot Tracts reprinted in 
Collections of the Massachusetts Historical 
Society, 1793, "The Day Breaking, if not 



the Sun Rising of the Gospel with the 
Indians of new England, London, 1647," 
he wrote, " Upon Oct. 28, 1646, four of 
us (having sought God) went unto the 
Indians inhabiting within our bounds with 
desire to make known the ways of their 
peace to them. . . . Upon November 11, 
1646, we came the second time to the same 
wigwam of Waban, where we found many 
more Indians met together than when we 
first came to them." 

Mr. Eliot had in his mind, before he 
began, to bring the Indians together as far 
as convenient in one community or town, 
that they might "secure the light of the 



58 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON 



Gospel, be taught civility and religion." 
For this purpose he selected the southern 
slope of the hil! and gave them tools, knit- 
ting machines, and other necessities of 
civility, and began to instruct and draw 
them on to a better life. He writes: " This 
towne the Indians did desire to know what 
name it should have, and it was told them 
it should be called Noonatomen, which 
signified in English, rejoicing, because they 
hearing the word and seeking to know God, 
the English did rejoice at it, and God did 
rejoice at it, which pleased them, and 
therefore that is to be the name of their 
towne." 
'Mr. Eliot continued at Nonantum, for 



for this purpose"; here Mr. Eliot and Mr. 
Gookin continued to come fortnightly, Mr. 
Eliot to teach and Mr. Gookin to settle 
differences. Mr. Gookin in a report to 
the Legislature (1676) gave the number of 
"praying Indians" at Nonantum as about 
one hundred. 

Thomas Trowbridge, son of Dea. James, 
lived within a stone's throw of the site 
selected for the Memorial, and here his 
son Edmund was born; this son became 
judge and was the last of the Tory judges. 
The land and homestead were sold in 1746 
to Col. Edward Durant, and from his son 
passed to John Kenrick about 1746; and 
the Kenrick descendants gave the site of 




THE ELIOT MEMORI.\L TERR.\CE NE.\R THE JU> 

AVENUE AND KENRICK STREET 



five years, this first attempt to civilize the 
Indian tribes of America; by this time he 
had found the nearness of the growing 
town of Boston presented temptations and 
opportunities which defeated to some extent 
his efforts, and he obtained a tract of land 
at Natick and secured the removal of a 
large portion of the "praying Indians" to 
that place. 

The interest of all future people in this 
location is not limited to the events already 
mentioned; twenty-five years after, there 
still lived here a number of Indian families, 
about one hundred people, and Mr. Eliot 
still came to them to teach and e.xhort, and 
Daniel Gookin'? to hold a court for the 
settlement of disputes. They caused to be 
built a schoolhouse " near where Mr. Eliot 
began to preach to them on land of Dea. 
James Trowbridge, who allows the land 



the Memorial to the trustees, by whom the 
Eliot Terrace and the Eliot Fund were 
conveved to the citv of Newton, October 
28, 1896. 

The Eliot Fund ($300) is held in trust 
by the city, the income to be expended 
annually for prize essays on historical sub- 
jects written by pupils of the public schools, 
and awarded under the direction of the 
superintendent of schools or the mayor of 
Newton. 

The location of the Memorial was se- 
lected from historical data found in the 
Eliot Tracts, 1647, Gookin's History of 
■the Praying Indians, 1676, Homer's His- 
torical Sketch of Newton, 1793, Jackson's 
History of Newton, 1854; and the inscrip- 
tion (vvritten by Pres. Charles W. Eliot) is 
historically correct. 

The mind of man delights to concentrate 



THE RELIGIOUS LIFE OF NEWTON 



.50 



its attention upon the particular spot of the 
earth's surface associated with a great 
event or with the deeds of great men; it is 
that at such places the emotions take on a 
warmer glow, even as the sun's rays, when 
focussed, kindle an answering lire. Thus 
it will be that Nonantum, the old original 
Xonantum of 1646 to 1(151, must become 



more and more the Mecca that will attract 
the thoughts and steps of pilgrims to his- 
toric shrines. 

The Eliot Memorial Terrace and the 
Eliot Fund will for long years to come in- 
spire faith, hope, and love, exemplified in 
the life and character of John Eliot the 
.\postle to the Indians. 



THK RELIGIOUS LIFE OF NEWTON 



THE CONGREGATIONAL 
CHURCHES 



THP: inhabitants of that part of New 
Town known as Cambridge Village 
began early to protest against the 
hardship of attending church so far away 
as the meeting-house at Old Cambridge. 



ing is marked by a marble column in the 
old Burying Ground on Centre Street. 
The first pastor was a son of John Eliot. 
The joy of the little flock was shadowed 
by the death of their promising young 
minister only four years after his ordination. 
His sudcsMir, Rev. Nehemiah Hobart, 
married the daughter of a pillar of the 
chun h, huih him a goodly house near by, 




ONUREG.\TION.\L CHURCH, .\'F:\VT0N CENTRE 



Their remonstrance was in vain for several 
years, but they persevered (the natural 
modern ^alternative of refusing to attend 
church at all seems not to have oc- 
curred to them), and in 1660 were al- 
lowed to erect a house of worship for 
hemselves. The site of this first build- 



and for forty-eight years led his brethren 
through a stormy and difficult period with 
eminent wisdom and grace. By the time 
of his death the centre of population had 
so changed that there was a demand for 
a meeting-house nearer the south part of 
the town. Although the settlement of Mr. 



THE RELIGIOUS LIFE OF NEWTOM 



61 



Hobart's successor, the youthful and elo- 
quent John Cotton, was amicably accom- 
plished, the question of moving the meeting- 
house caused great dissension for several 
years; it was finally decided by a decree 
of the General Court, and a building was 
erected on the present site of the Newton 
Centre church. This was an age of long 
pastorates, and most of the ministers died 
in office. The gentle Mr. Meriam, who 
bought his mother-in-law's slave to save 
her from that good lady's abuse; the saintly 
but eccentric Dr. Homer, and Dr. Furber 
of blessed memory, all served the church 
for long periods. Rev. Edward M. Noyes, 
the present pastor, is the ninth of an honor- 
able succession. 

As early as 1764 the families of the west 
part of the town had built a small meeting- 
house of their own, but their petition to be 
set off as a separate parish was not granted 
till 1778. Three years later Rev. William 
Greenough was ordained as their minister. 
The mother church "after some conversa- 
tion" sent four pewter tankards and a 
pewter dish toward the ct)mmunion furni- 
ture. L'nder "Father Greenough 's" long 
and judicious leadership, the young church 
stood firm through a period of great 
doctrinal controversy, and became a power 
for good in the growing village. His 
successor, Dr. Gilbert, served the church 
ably and efficiently for twenty-seven years, 
and Dr. Patrick's ministry covered thirty- 
three )'ears. 

In 1844 a deacon of the First Church 
assured a brother officer who had ventured 
the assertion that money enough might be 
raised" at the "Corner" to build a house of 
worship, "You may be able to raise the 
money, but I know not where }ou will find 
your people." The founders of Eliot 
Church had larger views, and in a year the 
neighborhood prayer-meeting had organized 
and built a church. Most of its members 
were from the First Church, and it is 
pleasant to record the brotherly spirit 
shown by all concerned. Its growth has 
been rapid, and Eliot has become the 
largest and strongest of all the daughters of 
the old First Church. Its present pastor is 
Rev. H. Grant Person. 

As the people of the West Parish had tired 
of the long journey to church, so the few 
families resident in Aubumdale came in 
time to feel that the privileges of a nearer 
sanctuary should be theirs, and a move- 



ment was set on foot for establishing and 
maintaining worship in their own ^•illage. 
In a few days $487 was subscribed, and a 
church was organized in 1850. The first 
place of worship was a hall, and for fi\e 
years the pulpit was supplied by resident 
clergymen, .'\uburndale being then, as now, 
a rendezvous for the saints. The present 
meeting-house was built in 1857, enlarged 
and improved in 1878. There have been 
only four pastors in over fifty years. 

The church at North Village is the out- 
growth of a Sunday School started in 1861. 
The first sessions were held in the open air, 
but in the spring of 1862 a modest chapel 
was built by the help of Eliot Church. In 
1866 the North Church was organized 
and Rev. Samuel Lowry, an enthusiastic 
and consecrated young man, became its 
pastor. This chapel, having been burned, 
was replaced by a tasteful stone church in 
1873. The present pastor is Rev. Henry 
E. O.xnard. 

. Like Eliot, Central Church grew out of 
a prayer-meeting. Dr. Patrick recalls being 
importuned by a Alethodist brother, who 
desired Congregational privileges for his 
mother and sister, to hold a prayer-meeting 
in Newtonville. This meeting was so 
prized that it became a regular appoint- 
ment, and in a few months the old Metho- 
dist chapel at the corner of Washington 
Street and Central Avenue was jnirchased. 
The church was organized in 1868, and 
Rev. Joseph B. Clark was installed as its 
pastor. This church has a reputation for 
starting brilliant young men in succc»ful 
careers, and has had as many mini>tir- 
in thirty-nine years as the First Church ha- 
in two hundred and forty-seven. Its pres- 
ent building was dedicated in 1895, and its 
pastor is Rev. J. T. Stocking. 

The youngest descendant of the First 
Church is at Newton Highlands. Meetings 
were first held there in 187 1 and a church 
and chapel built in 1875. This building 
having been outgrown, a movement for 
a new one was started in January, 1905. 
So great was the interest and enthu-iasni 
that the entire sum for building was ]i|fd^fcil 
and the work begun in the following Ma\ . 
The new church was dedicated in the fall 
of 1906, — free of debt, a worthy monument 
to the devotion and zeal of the people and 
the pastor, Rev. George T. Smart. 

Henry J. P.\trick. 

LUCL4 E. AURY.\NSEN. 



62 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON 



THE BAPTIST CHURCHES 

The Baptists began their Hfe in Newton 
with discouragements and persecutions. 
The brethren whose convictions led them 
to join a Baptist church in Boston were 
regular!}' called upon to furnish corn and 
wood and tithes for the support of Congre- 
gational worship, and their prayer to be 
released from this obligation, since as 
conscientious Baptists they paid their tax 
elsewhere, was unheeded for a good many 
years. Finally in the year 1776 the spirit 
of national independence seems so to 
have moved the authorities that they re- 
lented to the e.xtent of relieving certain 
Baptist brethren of the ministerial tax. 
Four years later the First Baptist Church 
was organized. Seventy-three persons, 
many of them from the old families of 
Newton, became members. 

The first meeting-house was erected on 
land given by Mr. Noah VViswall on the 
border of "Wiswall's Pond," for many 
years thereafter known as "Baptist Pond." 
This house was forty feet long by thirty- 
two feet wide, and cost about $1000. The 
society had a commendable dread of in- 
curring debt, and built as they had money 
in hand to pay for their work. During 
the ministry of Rev. Caleb Blood, the first 
jwstor, the interior of the building re- 
mained unfinished, and the congregation 
sat on rough boards laid across carpenters' 
"horses." The pastor's salary was £60, 
and such "loose money" as should be 
contributed on Lord's Days. To aid in 
his support he taught the district school, 
hut such perquisites failed to make his 
i III (line sutTicient for the needs of his family, 
an<l his pastorate was a short one. 

In 1788 Mr. Jo.seph Grafton, then thirty- 
one years of age, became the pastor. Dur- 
ing his long ministry Father Grafton re- 
ceived 567 persons into the memhcrshi|i 
of the church, was honored in the ilennmi- 
nation, respected as a citizen, and deeiily 
beloved as a pastor. In 1788 he was 
"taken from his United People after an 
Unbroken Communion of 48^ years," as 
the old gravestone in the Centre Street 
Burying Ground avers. He had been 
tlie minister for eight years before the 
meeting-house was finished and made 
luxurious by the introduction of a stove 
which cost ;^i I 14s. lod. 

After the Theological Institution had 
grown to importance it seemed best to 



move the church nearer to its buildings, 
and a new meeting-house was erected on 
the* present site in 1836. The last public 
service in the old building was the funeral 
of Father Grafton. 

The dismission of members to form a 
new church at the. Upper Falls, and the 
financial disasters of 1837, combined to 
bring about a time of great weakness and 
discouragement, so that they were unable 
to support a regular minister for several 
years. The faithful ministries of Rev. 
S. F. Smith, the author of "America," and 
his successor. Rev. O. S. Stearns, brought 
the church through its time of greatest 
trial, and since then its growth has been 
steady. From 1869 to 1880 Rev. William 
Newton Clarke, now the eminent Professor 
of Theology in Hamilton Seminary, was 
(he pastor. The relations of the church 
and the seminary have been close and 
jjleasant, and there is perhaps no Baptist 
church in America which so many minis- 
ters and missionaries recall with such 
happy memories of youthful consecration 
and enthusiasm. 

The will of the late Gardner Colby left 
the church $25,000, on condition that 
they should build, within ten years, a new 
house of worship to cost not less than 
$50,000, to be dedicated without debt. 
This was accomplished in 1888, and the 
First Baptist Church now worships in a 
building which is often referred to as an 
ideal suburban church. Rev. Maurice A. 
Levy, who has just been called, is the 
twelfth minister who has served this church 
in a history of 1 27 years. 

When the members of the First Church 
living in the Upper Falls village petitioned 
to be .set off as a separate parish. Father 
Grafton doubted the wisdom of the move- 
ment. After two years of regular worship 
in this chapel it seemed as though the 
<ciIony might stand on their own feet, and 
the church was organized in 1835 with 
fifty-five members, all dismissed from the 
Newton Centre church. From the begin- 
ning of the religious interest which resulted 
in the establishment of this church, the 
students of the Theological Seminary were 
a great help in the prayer-meetings and 
the Sunday School. The first pastor, 
Origen Crane, was a graduate, and Mr. 
Miller, who has supplied the pulpit the 
last two )-ears, is a student of the Seminary. 
The propitious beginning was followed 



THE RELIGIOUS LIFE (W NEWTOM 



by untoward changes. The older mem- 
bers died or removed and the new-comers 
to the manufacturing village were largely 
of foreign birth, but the little church still 
holds its own and maintains regular wor- 
ship. 

Baptist meetings were held in Newton 
Corner as early as 1859. A church was 
organized in i860, but continued to worship 
in a hall until 1864, when a meeting-house 
was built on the corner of Washington 
and Hovey Streets. Here they 
worked and prospered for 
twenty-one years, the pastorates 
of Rev. T. S. Samson and Rev. 
H. F. Titus being successful to 
a marked degree. As the work 
of the church increased, a new 
building and a better location 
became a necessity, and in 1885 
the corner-stone of the present 
beautiful and commodious 
structure was laid. Only the 
sterling " generosity and sacrifice 
of the 'members made possible 
the possession of such a property. 
Earlv in 1893 Dr. George E. 
Merrill n. .w PicMdent of Col- 
gate rni\ir-ii\ licji;an his pas- 
torati- ..I nine \r,:rs, the longest 
in the history of the church, 
during which it gained greatly 
in solidity and breadth of pur- 
pose. The present pastor is i\ 
Rev. Frank B. Matthews. 

The West Newton Baptist Church jje- 
gan hfe in Newtonville. In 1854 a church 
was formally organized with sixteen mem- 
bers, and a pastor was installed "at such 
a salary as the church might be able to 
raise," — which was about $600. In 1857 
the brick church near the station was built 
and dedicated, but in the financial panic 
of that year the few members were unable 
to meet their payments and the building 
was sold, first to the Unitarians, and then 
to the Methodists. For a few vears meet- 
ings were held at the houses of the members, 
but in 1866 they rallied once more. The 
devoted Deacon Sanger not only gave 
them *he use of a hall which he owned, but 
acted as sexton without pay for a long 
time. In 1870 the congregation and Sun- 
day School having largely increased, it 
seemed best to build a suitable house of 
worship, which was dedicated in 1871. 
The land upon which the church was 



built was given by Deacon Sanger. Dur- 
ing the pastorate of Rev. D. W. Faunce, 
the organization became strong enough to 
pay off its mortgage of $5,000. Under 
the able and winning ministrations of Rev. 
E. F. Snell the church has grown and 
prospered, and the Sunday School under 
Superintendent Gammons and Professor 
A. E. Bailey has increased sc much that 
an addition to the chapel has been found 
ncce.s.sary. In 1906 the name was changed 




from tiie First Baptist Church of West 
Newton to Lincoln Park Baptist Church. 
In the spring of 1874 some of the colored 
brethren organized under the name of the 
Myrtle Baptist Church, which in spite of 
misfortune and dissensions still flourishes 
under the pastorate of Rev. L. C. Parish. 



THE E;PISC0PAL CHURCHES OF 
NEWTON 

Episcopacy received but little encourage- 
ment in New England prior to the nine- 
teenth century. The descendants of the 
Puritans, with an inherited dislike to an 
institution which was so closely allied to 
the throne, not unnaturally opposed it. 
The Mother Church, unappreciative of 
the opportunities and indifferent to the 
success of the struggling Colonial Church, 
gave it but scant support. The Revolu- 
tion checked what little progress it had 



64 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON 



made, by depriving many of the churches 
of their Tory ministers. The general re- 
h'gious apath)' which followed the Re\o- 
lution seriously affected all denominations. 
A few parishes under the fostering care of 
the Society for the Propagation of the Gos- 
pel maintained a healthy although slow 
growth, but the church as a whole lacked 
cohesion and strength. 

It was viewed in a more liberal light after 
the Revolution and the War of 1812, and 
entered upon its constructive period. New- 
ton was among the first of the towns around 
Boston to take advantage (if the improved 
conditions 1)\ cslabli>liin'_^ in iSij at the 
Lower Falls, I hen the most im])ortant sec- 
tion of the town, the parish of St. Mary's. 
The village consisted of only a handful of 
houses with a population of about 250. 
There was no church nearer than the Second 
Parish of West Newton. Citizens of Need- 
ham, Weston, and Wellesley, who were 
also without a coiT\enient place of worship, 
imited with the few citizens of the Lower 
Falls, who had started services in 1811, in 
organizing a parish in 1812 and in incor- 
porating it on June 16, 1813, as the "Epis- 
copal Society of St. Mary's." A hall on 
the corner of Main and ("iiurch streets 
succeeded the schoolhouse, in wlii( h the 
first services were held, as a plare of wor- 
ship, and five months after incorporation 
the parish was enabled, through the gen- 
erosity of Samuel Brown of Boston, who 
presented two acres of land, and of other 
Boston friends, to lay, with Masonic rites, 
the corner-stone of the present church. 
On April 29, 1814, the building was con- 
secrated by Bishop Griswold, and in the 
same year the Parish joined the Conven- 
tion. The church was enlarged in 1838 
and 1893, .but is substantially the same as 
when first erected. The early services of 
the i)arish were in charge of candidates for 
Holy Onkr-, aii.l c k-rgy from Boston ad- 
ministered the sacraments. It was not until 
1822 that it was strong enough to support 
a minister, the Rev. Alfred Baury, who 
was ordained in November and served the 
church and community efficiently and 
faithfully for thirty years. He was a fine 
specimen of a gentleman of the old school, 
for ten years the secretary of the Diocesan 
Convention, and subsequently the rector 
of St. Mark's, Boston. During his incum- 
benc\' the communicants increased from 
12 to 130 and the number of faniiUes"to 



over 100. A Sunday School was started 
in 1818. The present rector. Rev. Thomas 
L. Cole, began his work in November, 
1 901. 

St. Mary's remained for over forty years 
the only Episcopal church in the town. 
During this time the Lower Falls was losing 
its place as the most important section of 
Newton, and other villages at the opposite 
end of the town were developing and cre- 
ating a demand for a new parish. A 
promising start was made in Newtonville 
in 1 85 1, the walls of a church having been 
parlly built, but owing to internal troubles 
the proiect was abandoned. Three years 
later ser\ices were held by Rev. Thomas F. 
Fales of Waltham in the house of Mr. 
Perry, at the corner of Galen and William 
streets, Watertown, which resulted in the 
organization, on September 27, 1855, of 
Grace Church parish. Services were held 
at first in Union Hall and afterwards in a 
wooden chapel at the corner of Washing- 
ton and Hovey streets, built in 1858. The 
Parish joined the Convention in the latter 
year. The present church building was 
built in 1873 and consecrated in 1887. 
The first rector was Rev. J. S. Copley 
Greene, who served for nine years. He 
was followed by Rev. P. H. Steenstra, Rev. 
Henry Mayer, and Rev. J. C. Jenckes. 
(^n January i, 1875, Rev. George Wolfe 
Shinn began his long and successful pas- 
torate, during which the chapel, parish 
house, choir guild hall, in memory of 
Bishop Brooks, and the Townsend Library 
were added to the building. Rev. Robert 
K. Smith was assistant rector from 1901 
to 1905. Dr. Shinn resigned in iqo6 and 
was made Rector F^meritus. 

An attempt was made in 1857 to organ- 
ize a parish in West Newton, but si.xteen 
years elapsed before that section had a 
church. The "Church of the Messiah, 
West Newton" was legally organized on 
November 6, 1871, and two years later 
war admitted to the Coinciilion. Services 
were held at \\v>l in the village hall and the 
Unitarian Chm-rh, and afterwards in the 
chapel of Lasell Seminary. The present 
chapel was occupied in i88i,and the corner- 
stone of the church laid by Bishop Brooks 
in 1892. The chapel was designed and 
its erection superintended as a labor of 
love by Mr. Charles E. Parker, at one 
time senior warden. The first rector was 
Rev. H. F. Fay. The present rector, Rev. 



THE RELIGIOUS LIEE OF NEWTON 



«5 



John Matteson, took charge on Septem- 
ber I, 1891. 

The first Episcopal church on the south 
side of the city was St. Paul's at Newton 
Highlands. On January 26, 1883, a pro- 
visional association was formed, which on 
April 23, 1884, was established by incor- 
poration as the "Parish of St. Paul's of 
Newton Highlands." The first service 
was held on February 4, 1883, in a hall in 
the post-ofSce building. On May i, 1883, 
ground was broken for a chapel, and on 
July 19, 1883, the parish held its first ser- 
vice in its own church. Five years later 
it was admitted into the Convention. In 



Services in Newton Centre were first 
held in i88g, being conducted by Rev. 
Carleton P. Mills, then rector of St. Paul's, 
Newton Highlands, and after he left by 
students from the Episcopal Theological 
School at Cambridge, including the present 
rector and Rev. Samuel G. Bajjcock, after- 
wards Archdeacon. " Trinity Association," 
under which name the organization was 
conducted, became Trinity Parish in 1892. 
The parish has had but one rector, Rev. 
Edward T. Sullivan, well known to the 
Episcopalians of the State as the successful 
editor of the " Church Militant " On Feb- 
ruary iq, 1893, its church was opened, and 




M\rn-^ 1 vi^'i op^i 



April, 1888, a rectory was purchased, and 
in 1905 its church was moved across the 
street and a parish house built. Fivej^rec- 
tors have ministered to the parish, the 
present rector. Rev. Clifford G. Twombley, 
having just completed his tenth year of 
service. It has a Sunday School of 159 
pupils which has made for itself an unique 
reputation, being not only not a financial 
burden to the church, but a financial help. 
Lenten oft'erings of the school for 1906 
exceeded by about $150 the joint offerings 
of all the schools of the other Newton 
Episcopal churches. The church also car- 
ries on an excellent social and reUgious 
work at the Upper Falls. 



three years later freed from debt. The lot 
on which the Lluin h now stands was bought 
in 1898 and the t hurch moved thereto and 
enlarged. The debt then incurred was 
discharged on January 20, 1907. Steps 
are now being taken to build a parish house. 
The Parish joined the Convention in 1894. 
The parish of the Church of the Re- 
deemer in Chestnut Hill was the result of 
the efforts of the St. Andrew Association. 
The first service was held on November 
29, 1885, with Rev. Dr. Shinn, the rector 
of Grace Church, in charge. The associa- 
tion was organized on February 10, 1886, 
under a constitution, and on September 23, 
1890, was incorporated under its present 



GG 



T?IE MIRROR OF NEWTOK 



name. Rev. Henry S. Nash was elected 
rector on November 21, 1887. The gener- 
osity of Mrs. Augustus Lowell furnished 
the parish with its present church, which 
was consecrated on June i, 1891. A 
parish house and rectory were subsequently 
built, and the church enlarged. The Par- 
ish joined the Convention in 1892. Rev. 
Mr. Nash served as rector and minister- 
in-charge until 1902. Rev. David C. 
Garrett succeeded him in 1903 and re- 
mained until 1905, when the present rector. 
Rev. Harry W. Perkins, took charge. 

St. John's, Newtonville, is the youngest 
of the Episcopal churches in the city. The 
first services were held in Temple Hall, 
Newtonville, in October, 1897, the Bishop 
officiating. Rev. Abel Millard began his 
services as rector in December, 1897. 
Upon his resignation in 1899 Rev. Richard 
T. Loring, the present rector, took charge. 
The parish was organized in 1900. Ser- 
\ices w^ere held in Temple Hall until the 
church on Lowell Avenue was opened on 
March 7, 1903. Although not yet ten 
years old, the parish has liatl a remarkable 
growth and has pnncd its ii-efuliiess. Its 
beautiful little church, ah'fad}- too small, 
its earnest rector, its xoiuiitcer \csted choir 
of men and wnmen under the leadership 
of .Mr. Elisha Avery, and the hearty co- 
operation of its members, injure it a pros- 
perous future. 

The sittings in all the Episcopal churches 
of the city are 2100, and are all free. 

Episcopal services have also been held for 
several years at Waban in the Church of 
the Good Shepherd, but the congregation 
has not yet been ofticially recognized as a 
parish or a mission. 

M.ARcus Morton. 



METHODISM IN NEWTON 

Methodism in the city of Newton is 
seventy-five years old. In the year 1826 
a Methodist class was formed at Newton 
Upper I'allN, with a Mr. Warren as leader. 
The vius>itude> incident to a factory town 
resulted in the disbanding of the class 
because many of the members moved 
away and it was not easy to keep the little 
band together. In 1828 another class 
was formed, with seventeen members, and 
Mr. Marshall S. Rice was the successful 
leader. By his tact and enthusiasm he 
managed to keep the little company to- 



gether, and this faithful band were the 
nucleus of the church which was formed in 

1832. This class grew in numbers, and a 
portion of it met at Lower Falls. At Upper 
Falls there was a building owned by the 
Eliot Company, which had been erected for 
the Universalists, in wluch services were 
held every other Sunday. Mr. Rice pro- 
posed to supply the pulpit free of charge, 
and his offer was accepted. In July, 1832, 
this property being offered for sale, Mr. 
Rice purchased it himself, paying for the 
building and repairs about $3500, " moved," 
as he said, "by a desire to do something 
for the cause of Christ, and the benefit of 
souls." The Methodists did not come into 
full possession of the property until April, 

1833, from which time their progress has 
been rapid. The first Methodist sermon 
was preached in 1832 by Rev. Charles K. 
True, then a student at Harvard College, 
and from June i, 1833, the JNIethodist 
Episcopal Church at Newton Upper Fails 
became a station in the New England 
Conference. It is interesting to note that 
one of the first acts of this new church was 
to recommend four young men for the 
ministry. 

To-day there are seven ^Methodist F^pis- 
copal churches in the city of Newton, and 
the church property is valued at $288,000. 
The dates of the organization of the various 
Methodist societies are: Newton Upper 
F'ails 1832, Newtonville i860. Auburn - 
dale 1862, Newton 1864, Newton Lower 
Falls 1864, Newton Centre 1879, Newton 
Highlands 1890. These churches have a 
membership of 1025, and in the Sunday 
schools there are 1124. Surely the little 
one of 1832 has become a thousand. 

These churches to-day represent a prac- 
tical form of aggressive Christianity, and 
their work is a credit to the city as well as 
to the denomination they represent. Their 
pulpits have been filled by many men who 
have won considerable fame for preaching 
ability, and in the pews there have been 
noble and generous lawmen who have con- 
tributed time and influence and money to 
the welfare of the city. The founder of 
Methodism in Newton, Marshall S. Rice, 
was master of the famous Rice School. 
He was thoroughly respected for his scholar- 
ship and integrity, and his name is honored 
to-day as that of one of the remarkable men 
in our city's history. Methodism has had 
many like him in Newton, and the mem- 



TITF. RELIOTOUS IJFE OF NEWTON 



bership of our churches have been worthy 
of the respect and honor accorded them. 
The recent reports from these seven 
churches made at the annual session of the 
New England Conference in Lynn, Mass., 



lirst meetings for public worship were held 
in West Newton in 1844, in the old brick 
hotel on Washington Street. These meet- 
ings were discontinued after August of that 
year, but were resumed in 1847 in Village 




Courtesy of the Town Crier 

METHODIST CHURCH, NEWTON UPPER FALLS 



reveals the fact that all are earnestly at 
work with the best signs of prosperity 
known for many years. 

George S. Butters. 



UNITARIANISM IN NEWTON 
That portion of the Christian household 
which bears the Unitarian name is repre- 
sented in Newton by three churches. The 
oldest is the West Newton Parish. The 



Hall, on the corner of Washington and 
Waltham Streets. A .society was organ- 
ized in 1848 under the corporate title "The 
First Unitarian Society in Newton," and 
the Rev. William Orne White was ordained 
and installed as its pastor. Mr. White re- 
signed in 1850, and during the ne.xt ten 
years four other pastors came and went. 
In i860 the first house of worship was 
erected — a building of very modest pro- 
portions. Notwithstanding much opposi- 



GS 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON 



lion, coming not only from the evangelical 
quarter, but also from its own denomina- 
tion because of certain radical tendencies 
regarded then as dangerous, the little soci- 
ety prospered, enlarging its building from 
time to time as need demanded. Rev. 
Francis Tiffany became its pastor in 1866, 
and excepting an interval of two years was 
its mini.-ler until 1883. Under his efficient 
leadership the i luirch won a place of dis- 
tinction in the denomination and of wide 
influence in the community. The ])resent 



therefore held meetings of their now in 
Union Hall, Newton Corner, with Dr. 
Converse Francis, of Har\-ard College, as 
their preacher. On September 2, 1851, 
a society was duly organized, and two years 
later Rev. Joseph Smith was called, who 
served as pastor until 1857. During that 
year a meeting-house was built, which was 
enlarged in 1867. The next minister vi'as 
Rev. E. J. Young, formerly a professor at 
Harvard University. Following him came 
Rev. Eli Fav, a brilliant preacher; then 




UXITARI.\X CHURCH, \\EST NE^\■TOX 



])astor, Rev. Julian C. Jaynes, was ordained 
and installed in 1885. 

In 1905-6 the society, finding the old 
meeting-house inadequate, erected its pres- 
ent church and parish house. It is con- 
structed of stone and brick, and is de- 
signed to meet all the demands of modern 
church activities. 

The second church organized was the 
Channing Society at Newton. In early 
days, when Unitarian families were few in 
this locahty, they attended the First Parish 
Church at Watertown. As their numbers 
increased, however, they felt the need of a 
more convenient place of worship, and 



Rev. George W. Hosmer, President of 
Antioch College. After Dr. Hosmer's re- 
tirement in 1879, the parish called Rev. 
Francis B. Hornbrooke, whose scholarly at- 
tainments and power as a preacher soon 
became widely recognized. During Dr. 
Hornbrooke's pastorate a new church was 
built, one of the largest and most beautiful 
in the city. The present minister is Rev. 
Adelbert L. Hudson, who was installed in 
1901. 

The third society is at Newton Centre. 
Religious services were first held on No- 
vember II, 1877, and in April of the next 
year the parish was regularly organized. 



THE RELIGIOUS LIFE OF NEWTON 



6!) 



The society used White's Hall as a place 
of meeting until 1880, at which time it was 
prosperous enough to build a church of its 
own. This building has since been en- 
larged and greatly improved, making it 
suitable for the increased activities of the 
parish life. 

The first minister was the Rev. Rufus 
P. Stebbins, D.D. His successors were 
Rev. Messrs. Horace L. Wheeler, Alex- 
ander T. Bowser, Benjamin F. McDaniel, 
Morgan Millar, Charles W. Wendte, and 
Alfred H. Brown, — who was installed as 
pastor in 1905. 

It will thus be seen that Unitarianism 
as an organized movement in Newton is 
of comparatively recent growth. When, 
nearly a century ago, many New England 
Congregational churches seceded from Cal- 
vinism and adopted the liberal theology, 
they carried with them the church property 
and their respective historic inheritances. 
But this was not the case in Newton. The 
churches were not visibly disturbed by the 
controversy, and remained loyal to the old 
faith. Unitarianism secured no foothold in 
Newton until long after it was the avowed 
faith of numbers of neighboring churches. 
It was introduced gradually by a new pop- 
ulation coming from other towns, and was 
reinforced from time to time as liberal 
fragments fell away from the established 
churches. 

It was not given a cordial welcome, and 
it recalls some of those early days when 
the atmosphere was charged with local hos- 
tilities and social frosts. Since then, how- 
ever, both sides have improved their man- 
ners. Unitarianism has become more con- 
structive and the old communions more 
tolerant and kind. The theological climate 
has changed, and it is quite within the 
truth to say that there is not a city in the 
land where the various Christian sects are 
more forgetful of the differences that divide, 
more eagerly co-operative for public good, 
more imbued with the spirit of charity and 
good wiU toward one another. 

Julian C. Jaynes. 

THE CATHOLIC CHURCH IN 
NEWTON 

The history of the Catholic Church in 
Newton dates back to a time just prior to 
the middle of the last century. In the year 
1846, the Rev. Patrick Strain, pastor at 



Waltham, visited Newton Upper Falls 
and assembled the few Catholics of that day 
at the house of Mr. John Cahill. A small 
room at Mr. Cahill's was Newton's first 
Catholic chapel; and here, before a handful 
of worshippers, the Holy Sacrifice of the 
Mass was offered for the first time in this 
city. 

Father Strain and his successor at 
Waltham, Rev. Patrick Flood, continued 
to visit the Upper Falls from time to time, 
holding services always at the house of Mr. 
Cahill. In 1848, Father Flood established 
St. Patrick's Parish at Watertown, and went 
there to live. From that year until the 
founding of St. Mary's Parish at the Upper 
Falls, the Priests connected with the church 
at Watertown watched over the spiritual 
welfare of the Catholics of Newton, — ex- 
cepting, for a brief period, those who lived 
in the section known as West Newton. In 
the year 1865, this district became a mission 
of Waltham. 

ST. MARY'S, NEWTON UPPER FALLS 

During the administration of Father 
Patrick Flood, a beginning was made in 
the collecting of funds to build a church at 
the Upper Falls. He and his assistant, 
Rev. Bernard Flood, who later succeeded 
him at Watertown, came here to hold 
services at irregular intervals; and it was 
not until i860 that regular Sunday service 
was established. The Catholics, at this 
time, numbered three hundred; and Eliot 
Hall served them as a place of worship. 

Father Bernard Flood was succeeded at 
Watertown by the Rev. John McCarthy; 
and it was during the latter's administra- 
tion that the first CathoHc church in New- 
ton, St. Mary's at the Upper Falls, was built. 
The church was a frame building, 40 x 76 
feet, and was dedicated by Bishop Williams, 
in 1867. 

St. Mary's became an independent Parish 
in 1870, with Rev. M. X. Carroll its first 
Pastor. The Rev. Michael Dolan suc- 
ceeded to Father Carroll's place, December 
4, 1871, and said his first Mass as Pastor 
of St. Mary's on December 6th. The 
building of a transept by Father Dolan 
enlarged the church to a seating capacity 
of 1,000. He also constructed a basement 
to the building, frescoed the upper church, 
secured the property adjoining to be util- 
ized for school and convent, and purchased 
thirtv-six acres of land in the town of Need- 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON 



ham, for cemetery purposes. For live 
years, the burden of his ministry was shared 
by the Rev. Michael Begley, a native of 
this Parish. Father Begley died a few 
years ago, while Pastor of the Church at 
Weymouth. Father Dolan left the church 
property in flourishing condition, when he 
was transferred to Newton, in 1885. 

The third Pastor of St. Mary's, the Rev. 
Martin O'Brien, lived but five years to 
carry on the work. He died November 
10, 1890. His body lies in St. Mary's 
Churchyard. The present Rector, the 
Rev. Timothy J. Danahy, suciuedcd Father 
O'Brien in 1891. Before hi^ (dmin^, the 
Parish was divided; St. Maf\'s still re- 
taining parts of Waban, Newton Highlands, 
and the town of Needham. During his 
pastorate, the church has been redecorated, 
the Parish house renovated, and ample 
provision made for future Parish develop- 
ment. The handsome St. Joseph's Church 
at Needham is a monument to his zeal 
and taste. Father Danahy was ably as- 
sisted in his work for many years by the 
Rev. Cornelius Riordan, now Pastor at 
Rockport, Mass. His assistant at the 
present time is the Rev. Frederick J. 
Allchin. 

ST. BERNARD'S CHURCH, WEST NEWTON 

The Catholics of West Newton first met 
for public worship in the year 1865. The 
Rev. Bernard Flood, then Pastor at Wal- 
tham, summoned them, and a tent served 
them as a church. Services were after- 
wards held in the City Hall. The gener- 
osity of his little flock enabled Father 
Flood to purchase land at the corner of 
Washington and Prospect Streets; and 
here he began the erection of St. Bernard's, 
Newton's "second Catholic church. The 
corner-stone was laid November 12, 1871, 
by the Very Rev. P. F. Lyndon, Vicar- 
General of the Diocese of Boston. The 
church, a brick structure, was completed 
in 1874, and was dedicated early in that 
year by Bishop Williams. The congrega- 
tion grew so rapidly that in 1876 West 
Newton was made a Parish, and the Rev. 
M. T. McManus was appointed its first 
Pastor. Father McManus labored here 
until his transfer to St. Patrick's Church, 
Lawrence, in 1884. St. Bernard's second 
Rector, the Rev. Christopher McGrath, 
worked among his people but two years. 
His death occurred in June, 1886. 



Since that time the Rev. Lawrence J. 
O 'Toole has been in charge. On the 
evening of June 23, 1889, the church was 
destroyed by fire. It was immediately re- 
built, and on April 27, 1890, was dedicated 
by Archbishop John J. Williams, the people 
holding service meanwhile in City Hall. 
The present church is a handsome Gothic 
structure of brick, with lirown .sandstone 
trimmings, and has a seating capacity of 
1,000. Besides rebuilding the church, 
Father O'Toole purchased the present 
Rectory and land adjoining; and a few 
years since, he secured a large property on 
Washington Street to the east of the church, 
to be used for school purposes. The Rev. 
Charles J. Galligan and the Re\-. Francis 
J. Cronin are associated with Fatiier 
O'Toole in the Parish work. 

OUR L.^DY's, NEWTON 

The largest of the Catholic churches in 
Newton is that of Our Lady, situated at the 
corner of Washington and Adams Streets. 
A hall at Newton Corner first served as 
chapel for the Catholics of this portion of 
the city. Here, in the fall of 1872, the 
people gathered under the direction of the 
Rev. M. M. Green, then Pastor oi Water- 
town. Father Green secured the land on 
which the present church stands, and began 
at once the erection of the church, the 
corner-stone of which was laid August 31, 
1873. The basement was completed and 
the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass first offered 
there on All Saints' Day, 1874. In August, 
1878, Newton was set apart as a Parish, and 
Father Green became its first Pastor. Dur- 
ing his Pastorate, the superstructure of the 
church was completed, and on his death, 
in 1885, the Rev. Michael Dolan, until this 
time in charge of the Parish of Newton 
Upper Falls, assumed the rectorship. 

Father Dolan has been actively engaged 
in Church work in various parts of Newton 
since 1871, and what he has accomplished 
gives abundant evidence of his ability and 
zeal. On coming to this Parish, he gave 
his attention first to the building of a suit- 
able Parish house. The present Rectory, 
built of brick with brown sandstone trim- 
mings, was soon completed. This done, 
the debt on the church was cancelled, 
and three marble altars were placed in the 
basement. Each year of his incumbency 
has witnessed some marked improvement 
in the Church properly. 



THE RELIGIOUS LIFE OF NEWTON 



Realizing that the Church, to reach the 
highest standard of efficiency, must be 
supported by the thorou.i;hly Christian 
education of the children, he undcrinok his 
greatest work, the establishiucnl ni the 
Parish school, with the consiriu licm of the 
buildings necessary for its successful opera- 
tion. A smaller building, utilized for heat- 
ing purposes, as well as the convent and 
school, are built of brick with granite 
trimmings, and in harmony with the 
church itself. The school building is 
well equipped, and modern in every par- 
ticular. At the present time it accom- 
modates 1,062 pupils, taught by twenty- 
one Sisters of Charity from Madison, N.J., 
at an annual saving to the city of more than 
$40,000. The school is free; and its 
curriculum is complete from kindergarten 
to classical and business high schools, 
fitting the pupils for college or business 
life. More recently. Father Dolan pur- 
chased 100,000 feet of land to the west of 
the Rectory, giving to the property a 
frontage of 540 feet on Washington Street 
and a depth of 750 feet on Adams Street. 

Less than three years ago, he began the 
reconstruction of the church. Some hidden 
defect in the original structure made it 
necessary to build transepts which would 
serve as a support to the main walls. This 
work involved the outlay of many thousands 
of dollars, but the result has more than 
justified the expenditure, the transepts 
giving the necessary strength and much 
beauty to the church. A fafade in the 
form of three Gothic porches was con- 
structed at the same time, and the whole 
church beautifully frescoed. The church, 
interiorly and exteriorly, is a fine type of the 
pure Gothic, and has a seating capacity of 
1,600. 

Father Dolan is a Permanent Rector, 
and under his able management the church 
established here has taken a foremost place 
among church properties in the Arch- 
diocese of Boston. For more than twenty- 
years, his work was shared by the Rev. 
James Gilfether, now Rector of the Church 
of the Sacred Heart, West Lynn. His 
assistants at present are the Rev. James F. 
Kelly and the Rev. Aloysius S. Malone. 

ST. JOHN'S CHURCH, NEWTON LOWER FALLS 

The year 1870 witnessed the first gath- 
ering of Catholics at the Lower Falls to 
assist at the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. 



They assembled in Boyden Hall at the call 
of Rev. M. X. CarroU, first Pastor of the 
mother Parish of St. Mary's. Father Car- 
roll's successor. Rev. Michael Dolan, held 
services in the same hall for a number of 
years, securing meanwhile the present 
church site. In 1874, he built a small 
stable on the land; and the church build- 
ing, begun about the same time, was com- 
pleted in 1880. On May 8, 1881, it was 
dedicated by Archbishop Williams, under 
the name of St. John the Evangelist. St. 
John's ceased to be a mission of the Upper 
Falls in 1890; and in November of that 
year, the Rev. P. H. Callanan became its 
first Rector. Since his advent, the Church 
interests have steadily improved. He built 
the present Rectory, graded the spacious 
grounds, renovated, enlarged, and frescoed 
the church. Its seating capacity is now 
800. The beauty of the entire property 
at the present time bespeaks the care and 
zeal of both pastor and people. The Rev. 
Edward F. McLeod, now of St. Joseph's, 
Boston, was Father Callanan's co-worker 
for several years. He is at present assisted 
by the Rev. John J. McGrath. 



CHURCH OF THE SACRED HEART, NEWTON 
CENTRE 

Until the year 1890, the Catholics of 
Newton Centre worshipped at St. Mary's, 
Newton Upper Falls. On December 6th 
of that y«fe-, the Rev. Denis J. Wholey 
was sent to organize the Parish; and he 
held services each Sunday in .\s>(jciaiiiin 
Hall. A church site had been secured lj\- 
Father O'Brien, Pastor of St. .Mary's, and 
here, on August 5, 1891, Father Wholey 
began the erection of the present beautiful 
Church of the Sacred Heart. The corner- 
stone was laid October i8th of the same 
year, by Archbishop Williams, and the 
Holy Sacrifice was offered in the basement 
for the first time on the Christmas morning 
following. The church has since been en- 
larged and the superstructure completed. 
It was dedicated by Archbishop Williams, 
October i, 1899. 

The Church of the Sacred Heart is a 
brick structure, with pink granite trim- 
mings, Romanesque in style, and unique 
both in general design and in detail. The 
interior of the church, finished after the 
manner of a Roman Basilica, is an ex- 
quisite piece of work. The present Rec- 



72 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON 



tory, which was remodelled by Fr. Wholey, 
will soon be replaced by a handsome 
brick structure in harmony with the church. 
In past years, Father Wholey was assisted 
by the Rev. George McDermott, now of 
St. John's Church, Worcester; and the 
Rev. Thos. J. Lee, who died October, 
1905. The Rev. James Haney has been 
his assistant since May, 1905. 

The limited space allotted to this sketch 
allowed but the hriefe.-t menlidn cf material 



seed has grown. The future will unfold 
still greater things. 

James F. Kelly. 



THE NEWTONVILLE NEW- 
CHURCH SOCIETY 
In the spring of 1846 Mr. Davis Howard, 
a New-Churchman from Boston, built a 
house at what was then called "Hull's 
(■l■(l^^in''," now Xewtomillr. It was the 






^T^^" nil ill 




details. Nothing has been said of the va- 
rious Church activities: the many socie- 
ties for men, women and children, parish 
visitation, etc. However, the simple story 
of the material development may well serve 
as an indication of the spiritual progress 
which produced it. The private room of 
1850 has been replaced by si.\ churches, at 
which the Sunday attendance varies from 
1,200 to 4,000. Some 15,000 Catholics 
now live within the limits of this city, and 
a dozen priests are necessary to minister 
to their spiritual wants. So the mustard 



first house that had been jjuill in the little 
village for more than twenty years. The 
next house built in Hull's Crossing was that 
of Mr. Timothy H. Carter in the following 
year. Mr. Carter had purchased a tract 
of about 30 acres in what is now the heart 
of Newtonville. Upon this tract several 
houses were built and occupied by Mr. 
Carter's friends connected with the Boston 
Society. This group of New-Church peo- 
ple began to hold Sunday services first in 
the house of Mrs. Howard, in 1849, ^^'^ 
afterwards in the house of Mr. Carter. 



THK RELKIIOUS LIFE OF NEWTON 



73 



These meetings were conducted generally 
by a lay reader, — but occasionally they had 
the service of a minister or licentiate. 

In 1857, Mr. John Worcester received 
and accepted a call *'^ i^e'^^'^e p"^*"-- "f 
the society which was inform ilh or^ini/cd 
at about this time. Wlitn he entered up n 

his duties as pastor 

(Oct. 25, 1857) Mr. 
Worcester was a 
licentiate, but in 
April, 1861, he was 
ordained as minister 
by his father, the- 
Rev. Dr. Thomas 
Worcester, pastor of 
the Boston New- 
Church Society, and 
from that time he 
discharged all the 
duties devolving 
upon a minister. 

The society after 
its formation con- 
tinued to hold its 
meetings for a time 
in Mr. Carter's 
house. As the mem- 
bership grew, a small 
hall on Bowers Street 
was made the place 
()f meeting. Later 
for a few }ears ser- 
vices were held in 
a small unoccupied 
church building on 
Washington Street, 
and later still for a 
short time in an 
upper room in Tre- 

mont Hall building, ^^.j., 

then standing in 
Newtonville Square- During all these 
years, we may believe, the hopes and 
efforts of both pastor and people were 
centred in having a permanent church 
home of their own. This end was at- 
tained early in 1869 by the erection of a 
wooden chapel on Highland Avenue, where 
the present church now stands. It was 
deelicated April 11, 1869. In 1886-87 
the present Sunday School building was 
erected. It was built of stone that it 
might be in keeping vnih a new and larger 
church edifice, which was then talked of, 
and which was built seven years later. 
The first service held in the new building 



was the Sunday after Easter in 1894, and 
the building was consecrated free from 
debt Easter Sunday, 1898. When this 
building was erected the smaller wooden 

of the lot to be u-.eel for Sund i\ Sehool 
ind ) il I uipo e The e itm 




CHURCH, MCWTOXXILLE 



of the church is about 400, and it is well 
equipped with organ, e'lei trie lighting, etc. 
In the other building- ailjiKciit there are 
Sunday School rooms, a .•>i)eial hall with 
a large well-appointed stage, a library, 
kitchen, coat and toilet rooms, etc. These 
rooms are freely used for the Sunday 
School and class meetings, for social and 
society meetings, and for meetings of the 
Woman's League, Young People's League, 
and committees connected with the society. 
Mr. Worcester died May i, 1900, having 
served as pastor of the society for more 
than forty-two years in relations both to the 
society and to the community that can be 



74 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON 



said to 1)6 little short of ideal. He had been 
permitted to see in that time his flock grow 
from a little company of worshippers in a 
private parlor to a congregation of two 
hundred or more in a commodious church. 
Mr. Worcester's e.xalted character and great 
ability gave him a prominent place in the 
church at large, and therefore wider in- 
terests than those of his little parish had a 
large claim upon his time almost from 
the first. He was for several years pro- 
fessor and President of the New-Church 
Theological School, Presiding Minister of 



number in attendance upon the church 
services has always been greatly in e.xcess 
of the number of church or society mem- 
bers. The membership of the society is 
but little more than one hundred, w'hile 
the congregation frequently numbers 
more than twice as manv. 

John T. Prince. 



UNn'KRSALl^T CHURCH, NKW T(J-\ \ 1 LI. 

the Massachusetts Association, and Presi- 
dent of the General Convention. In 
addition to these duties, he did much in 
the way of writing and translating, as 
is shown by the books that have been 
published in his name. 

A few months after the death of Mr. 
Worcester, the Rev. John Goddard, of 
Cincinnati, was called to become the 
second pastor of the society. He consented 
to come as minister for a year, begin- 
ning his ministry February g, igoi, and 
a year later he became full pastor. The 
hold that the two pastors have had upon 
the general public has been such that the 




THE UNIVERSALIST CHURCH 

The Universalist Society of Newtonville 
was the outgrowth of a missionary move- 
ment made in 1870. The first to 
be identified with it were several 
persons who had been connected 
with the "Newton and Watertown 
Universalist Society" and the 
" Waltham Universalist Society," viz., 
William Page, E. F. Tainter, E. S. 
Farnsworth, and others, who had 
been members of neighboring church- 
es, also E. T. Trofitter, Eben Hig- 
gins, and H. M. Small. Mrs. Mary 
T. Goddard added her influence 
and generous support. The first 
meeting was held in the small hall 
o\er Williams's Drug Store, in New- 
ton\ille Square. Rev. T. B. Thayer, 
D.D., preached the first sermon, 
in February, 1871. In the following 
spring, the societv removed into 
Tremont Hall. 

The legal organization of the 
-ociety was effected early in A])rii, 
187 1, and a vote was passed July 
22, 1872, to purchase land on \\'ash- 
ington Park, Newtonville, for the 
erection of a church edifice. The 
corner-stone of a beautiful stone 
church was laid October 22, 1872, 
and the building was dedicated June 
26, 1873. 

Rev. J. Coleman Adams, the first pastor, 
took charge of the society in September, 

1872, and was ordained December 19, 1872. 
The church was organized in February, 

1873, with thirteen members. The first 
deacons were Elijah F. Tainter and Edward 
T. Trofitter; afterwards, Henry Ross. In 
1880, Mr. Adams resigned his charge and 
removed to Lynn. 

After his resignation the church was 
without a pastor for about a year, when 
Rev. C. EUwood Nash accepted a call, and 
remained with the society for three years, 
until June, 1884. 



THE RELIGIOUS LIFE OF NEWTON 



In October, 1884, Rev. Rufus A. White 
became the pastor and continued with the 
society until 1892. During his pastorate 
the addition of a large and beautiful parish 
house to the main building was made, and 
two very successful fairs were held to raise 
money for this object, — one netting some- 
thing like $1000, the other $1600. 

Rev. Ira A. Priest followed Rev. Mr. 
Wliite, and the subsequent pastors have 
been Rev. Charles S. Nickerson, Rev. S. G. 
Dunham, and Rev. Albert Hammatt, the 
present incumbent. Albert H.-^mm.^tt. 

CHURCH OF YAHVEH (SECOND 
ADVENT) 

The Church of Yahveh was organized 
in April, 1886, with twenty-five members, 
at Newton Upper Falls. 
Some years later a Sunday 
School was opened, and the 
present membership is ten. 
Being in a manufacturing vil- 
lage, with its changing pop- 
ulation, largely foreign, we 
have not made much pro- 
gress as far as increase in 
numbers is concerned. 

Our chapel was built in 
1886 and dedicated Octoljcr 
17 of that year. The founder 
and first pastor was Luther 
T. Cunningham. He re- 
mained in charge until his 
death in September, 1898. 

The present pastor is 
Martin L. Cunningham, son 
of the above, who has offici- 
ated since 1898. 

There are quite a number of people 
of our faith in Newton, some of whom 
attend services in Boston or some nearer 
place. We do not see the aggressive 
work done that we would like to, but we 
are trj-ing to fill our place in the religious 
life of the city as best we can. We have 
one preaching service a week, every Sun- 
day at 2.30 P.M. Our Sunday School is 
held at 1.30 p.m. 

M. L. Cunningham. 

THE NEWTON THEOLOGICAL 
INSTITUTION 

The founding of the Institution dates 
from a large and representative meeting 



of Baptist ministers and laymen at the 
First Baptist Meeting House in Boston, 
May 25, 1825. It was unanimously re- 
solved to found a school for the theological 
training of men for the Baptist ministry. 
A strong committee at once began the work 
of perfecting an organization, .'■electing a 
site, and preparing for the opening of the 
school. So vigorously did they act, that 
in June they had selected and purchased 
the Peck estate in Newton Centre as the 
site for the school. The " Mansion House," 
built in the English fashion, was used, after 
some alterations, as a dormitory, lecture 
hall, and chapel. In November the work 
of instruction began. It is safe to say that 
the influence of Father Grafton, pastor 
of the Baptist Church in Newton Cen- 
tre, was paramount in the locating of the 




Institution. The old Mansion House 
was taken down in 1876, and on its site 
was erected, in 1895, the beautiful and 
classic Hills Library building, which was 
largely the gift of Mrs. E.M. Hills and 
the bequest of Mr. J. C. Hartshorn, both 
of whom were residents of Newton. Mr. 
H. H. Kendall of Newton Centre was 
the architect. Farwell Hall, a dormitory 
building, was erected in 1828 and wholly 
remodelled in 1898. Colby Hall, a fine 
stone building containing the lecture-rooms, 
was erected in 1866, largely through the 
generosity of Mr. Gardner Colby of New- 
ton Centre. It was remodelled in 1897, 
in which year the beautiful Colby Chapel 
which is attached to it was made ready 



THE MIRROR OV NFAVTON 



for use. Sturtevant Hall, a dormitory and 
dining hall, was built in 1873, mainly 
through the kindness of Mr. B. F. 




COLBY HALL 

Sturtevant of Jamaica Plain. The Presi- 
dent's House was built in 1900 through 
a bequest of E. C. Fitz, Esq., of Boston. 
The Gymnasium, the Central Heating 
Plant, and the artistic stone Well House 
over the ancient well are useful ad- 
juncts of the school. These buildings, 
which are visible for miles in every direc- 
tion, crown the beautiful hill in Newton 
Centre, and are set in the midst of fitting 
park-like grounds of great charm, which 
are freely and hospitably open to all 
citizens of Newton. 

The Rev. Irah Chase, D.D., was the 
first professor, and the framer of the first 
curriculum, which covered a period of 
three years of study in order to gradua- 
tion, and which was the most thorough 
and e.xtensive theological course known 
among Baptists of that period. It re- 
quired the study of the Holy Scriptures 
in the original Hebrew and Greek. This 
curriculum has been kept up to date 
by the addition from time to time of such 
studies and research work as increasing 
knowledge has required, and is now re- 
garded in its range and quality as abreast 
of those of the best theological schools of 
the country. The work is divided into 
six departments: Old Testament, New 
Testament, Christian Theology and Ethics. 
Church History, Homiletics, and Elocu- 
tion. The Institution has had a suc- 



cession of eminent scholars and teachers 
in its facultv. Amongst these, Irah 
Chase, D.D.. H. J. Riplev, D.D., Barnas 
Sears, D.D., LL.D., H. B. 
Hackett, D.D., LL.D., Alvah 
Hovey, D.D., LL.D., Heman 
Lincoln, D.D., O. S. Stearns, 
D.D., S. L. Caldwell, D.D., 
LL.D., were men of such rank 
as to give distinction to any 
theological seminary. The 
present Faculty consists of the 
following: President Nathan 
E. Wood, D.D., J. M. English, 
D.D., C. R. Brown, D.D., S. 
S. Curry, LL.D., J. B. Thomas, 
D.D., LL.D., F. L. Ander- 
>on, D.D., W. N. Donovan, 
Ph.D., G. E. Horr, D.D., H. 
K. Rowe, Ph.D. 

By gifts and service various 

citizens of Newton have 

shown their friendship for the 

school. Among them ought 

to be named Gardner Colby, Thomas 

Nickerson, and Stephen Greene. The gifts 

of Gardner Colby, the largest giver 

to its funds in New England, were 




REV. .\LVAH HUVEY, 



about $100,000. The Institution has 
sent out from its halls about fifteen 
hundred men, many of whom have 



THE RKLI(;i()US LIFE OF NEWTON 



attained great usefulness and distinction as 
educators, preachers, pastors, authors, mis- 
sionaries, and philanthropists. Such great 
presidents as B. Sears, A. Hovey, E. G 
Robinson, M. B. Anderson, H. G. Weston 
E. Dodge, A. W. Sawver, S. Talbot, J. N 
Gushing, D. A. W. Smith, E. B. Andrews 
such professors as J. S. Maginnis, J. L 
Lincoln, H. Lincoln, O. S. Stearns, B 
Manly, J. H. Gilmore, W. H. Kicrstcad 
C. Goodspeed, S. Burnham, R. S. Cdlwcll 




such preachers as Wm. Hague, R. "*!. 
Neale, E. L. Magoon, G. D. Boardman, 
A. J. Gordon. J. W. Smith, T. D. Ander- 
son; such missionaries as F. Mason, B. C. 
Thomas, J. Goddard, J. L. Binney, L. 
Jewett, C. H. Carpenter, J. N. Gushing, 
E. A. Stevens; all these and a host of others 
equally worthy are the sons to whom the 
Institution thankfully and proudly points. 
They have girdled the globe with their 
usefulness, and their fame is in all the 
churches. 

Nathan E. Wood. 



THE WALKER MISSIONARY 

HOME 

This institution, the ipioneer among 

homes for missionarv children in this 



country, is located at the confluence of 
Hancock and Grove Streets in Auburndale, 
on the estate formerly owned by Rev. 
Sewall Harding. In 1867 Mr. Harding's 
daughter, Mrs. Eliza H. Walker, after 
fourteen years' service as a missionary in 
Turkey, returned a widow to her father's 
house. At the next annual meeting of the 
American Board, the care of missionary 
children in this country came up for dis- 
cussion, some sad cases of neglect and ill- 
treatment having become known, and as a 
result, Mrs. Walker and Mrs. Z. Styles 
Ely of New York were appointed a com- 
mittee to assist missionaries to find suitable 
homes for their children. 

Mrs. Walker having secured a house for 
herself and her children, it occurred about 
this time that a missionary soon to return 
to Micronesia sought her aid in finding 
homes for a little son and daughter. Fail- 
ing in several efforts to find suitable places 
for them, ^Irs. Walker took them into her 
own family as her contribution to the cause 
for which she was asking aid from others. 
But friends hearing of this insisted on shar- 
ing the financial burden, and recognizing 
in this a special call to a work for which she 
seemed peculiarly fitted as a mother and 
herself a former missionary, she consented 
to receive other children on the same plan, 
till the family grew beyond the capacity 
of her own house. On the death of her 
parents, Mrs. Walker used their house for a 
time for the overflow, and in 1879 she pur- 
chased it and enlarged it to its present 
capacity. Later, an adjoining estate was 
added, its house, now called the Walker 
Cottage, to serve as a residence for mis- 
sionary families when at home on a fur- 
lough, and the barn, converted into a 
dwelling, now called the Walker Lodge, 
for the use of a 'caretaker for the 
premises. 

Some 3^ears after the enlargement of the 
main house, the place was purchased of 
Mrs. Walker and deeded to the American 
Board to insure the permanence of the 
institution, as its need was now fully dem- 
onstrated. A special board of trustees 
holds the property and a board of lady 
managers supervises its domestic affairs. 
Up to the present time, nearly three hun- 
dred missionary children and nearly two 
hundred missionary families have enjoved 
the ho.spitality of the Home. 

Dean A. Walker. 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON 



HOME FOR THE CHILDREN 
OF MISSIONARIES 

At the corner of Centre and Gibbs Streets, 
stands a large, brown house, substantial 
3^et attractive. Trees and shrubs abound 
on the west and north lawns, with a tennis 
court on the south and a venerable willow 
that serves for gymnasium. This is the 
Home for Children of Missionaries" built 
by the Woman's Baptist Foreign Mis- 
sionary Society, at the earnest request of a 
missionary from China, Rev. S. B. Part- 
ridge. He was facing the supreme trial 
of missionaries, — the separation from their 
children. In consultation with friends, 
he devised a wise plan for a Home, and 
begged the Woman's Society to establish it. 
They consented to do so, not as an integral 
part of their own work, but as a help to the 
Missionary Union. The residence of Dr. 
S. F. Smith was rented, while he was abroad ; 
and in 1882, a lot was purchased and the 
house built. The parents pay what they 
can towards the support of their children, 
and the Woman's Society supplies what 
is lacking. Twenty-four are now in the 
Home, girls and boys from nine to eighteen 
years old. Of the eighty-eight who ha\e 
been there, si.x are teachers, five physicians, 
seven foreign missionaries, two superin- 
tendents of Sunday Schools, and others are 
looking forward to similar positions. So 
far as is known, not one has proved to be 
unworthy. The grateful letters recei\'ed 
from parents assure us that our labor has 
not been in vain. 

Two devoted Superintendents have been 
in charge, Mrs. Jean !McKinlay, for seven- 



teen years, and Miss Susan E. Barrett, for 
eight vears. Mrs. Alvah Hovey. 



HASSELTON HOUSE 
Hasselton House, 40 Chase Street, New- 
ton Centre, was built in 1895 by the 
Woman's Baptist Foreign Missionary So- 
ciety, after an e.xperiment of five 3'ears had 
convinced the board of directors of that 
society of the wisdom of providing special 
training for its missionary candidates. 

Through the courtesy of the trustees and 
faculty of the Newton Theological Insti- 
tution, the young women resident there 
are admitted to the classes at the Institu- 
tion. A course in missions and occasional 
lectures on kindred topics are given at 
Hasseltine House. The society counted 
itself fortunate in securing as head of the 
house a missionary mother of seventeen 
years' experience in Burma. Mrs. O. L. 
George has successfully filled for sixteen 
years the position of mother and helper 
to the many girls who have been fitted for 
higher and better service for their ^Master 
by a sojourn in this beautiful home. 

Since the house was built, about seventy- 
five girls have spent a term in study there, 
fifty of whom are now at work in distant 
lands. In the cases of the others ill-health 
or other disqualifications have been dis- 
covered, and thereby a wise saving of time 
and money has been made, and many sad 
disappointments averted. The society 
therefore feels that the enterprise has been 
a wise and profitable investment for mis- 
sions. 

Mrs. M. Gr.^nt Edm.ai^js. 



PHASES OF NEWTON CIVIC LIFE 



THE NEWTON FREE LIBRARY AND ITS 
BRANCHES 

BY ELIZABETH P. THURSTON 



THE Newton Free Library and its six 
branches, or in other words the seven 
wonders of the modern world, are 
situated in various parts of Newton. The 
main library came into existence almost 
forty years ago, arising out of different minor 
organizations finally centralized through 
the foresight and financial aid of J. Wiley 
Edmands and other earnest workers. The 
library was organized in 1869; the building 
was dedicated and opened in 1870, and in 
1871 the Newton Free Library was incor- 



porated by the Legislature of Massachu- 
setts. It has grown gradually during these 
years to its present importance. It ac- 
commodates more inhabitants than any 
other building in New-ton. Upwards of 
60,000 genial souls sit in their places ready 
at any time to come down and converse 
with whosoever comes in, and never are 
they too busy to lend their inspiration to 
any seeker. That is, they are in their 
places unless they are out visiting, for 
they are somewhat of a gadding nature, in 




KKKE LIIiKAKV, 



so 



THE ,M1RR()1< OF NEWTON 



fact belong to the famih' of the Go-Goes, 
and thousands of them are at any time to 
be found making calls at the houses or 
schools of Newton. Indeed, there have 
been chronicled upwards of 170,000 of these 
visitations in one year. 

The eldest daughter, the West Newton 
Branch, is more than half a century older 
than its mother. In 1798 the West Parish 
Society Library was organized, and later 
its books were turned over to the Athe- 
n;tum, which afterwards gave itself to the 
city; in 1894 the city made it part of the 
Newton Free Library. Auburndale next, 
through its Village Improvement Society, 
started a reading-room and reference 
library which, in about three months, came 
to be sister to the West Newton Branch. 
At Newton Centre a Library Association 
had been founded in 1859 by Hon. J. F. C. 
Hyde and others. The books gathered 
were given to the Newton Library in 1873. 
Later a reading-room was maintained by 
the Newton Centre Associates, which be- 
came afterwards Branch number three of 
the Newton Free Library. 

The Quinobecjuin Association at Upper 
Falls took the initiative soon in establish- 
ing its reading-room, and the Ralph Waldo 
Emerson, the Colossus of two Roads, is the 
result. Nonantum could not be left Ijehind, 
and in 1906 by subscriptions collected for 
the purpose opened its reading-room, which 
is now another branch of the main librar_\-. 
Three months later, in Newtonville, the 
seventh wonder, the watch tower or Pharos, 
which has its eagle eye almost upon the high 
school, began its career. This branch, 
though the youngest, is already a vigorous 
infant and is reaching out for all the good 
things enjoyed by the others. Through the 
si.x branches the benefits of the library are 
brought nearer to the Newton people. 
Each branch has a deposit of books all the 
time from the main library, which books 
are circulated from the branch and are 
frequently exchanged for a fresh supply. 
Five other agencies for the distribution of 
books— at Newton Highlands, Waban, 
Lower Falls, Oak Hill, and Chestnut Hill- 
help to make a connection between readers 
and books. The messenger who carries 
the books drives from thirty to thirty-five 
miles a day, collecting the books in the 
forenoon and carrying others back in the 
afternoon. The circulation through these 
eleven distributing agencies forms from 



sixty to sixty-five per cent, of the whole 
circulation. 

The affairs of the institution are ruled 
over by the seven wise men of the West. 
At least seven has been the number of 
trustees, but since the death of Hon. Will- 
iam Claflin no wise man has yet risen up to 
succeed him. In 1876 the library gave itself 
into the arms of the City Fathers, since 
which time it has been supported by an 
annual appropriation from the city. 

Different citizens have felt the importance 
of the work that the library is accomplish- 
ing in the community, and have shown their 
interest by giving or bequeathing money 
in the form of funds, the incomes from 
which are used for adding to the books. 
The Alden Speare Fund of $1000 is to help 
supjsly books dealing with manufactures 
and the mechanic arts; the Jewett Art Fund 
aids the fine arts collection of books, pict- 
ures, etc. The Charles Read Fund gives 
yearly from four to five hundred dollars 
for books; the Farlow Reference Fund of 
$5000 adds to the reference department; 
the Elizabeth L. Rand Fund will help with 
books of a general nature, and the John 
C. Chaffin Fund of S5000 will add books 
of an elevating and instructive character. 

The branches have collections of the 
important books of reference, such as dic- 
tionaries, atlases, encyclopaedias, etc., and 
the seven reading-rooms supply periodicals 
for the readers of each village. There are 
furnished at the main reading-room about 
one hundred and twenty-five magazines 
and about forty newspapers, and a lesser 
number at each of the branches. A Young 
People's Room in the main library has 
proved of great advantage to the younger 
members of the community, who much 
enjoy its privileges. The children have 
access to the shelves in an attractive room, 
which is under the charge of an assistant 
very fond of children and eager to aid them 
in every way. 

The Newton schools, both public and 
private, make great use of the library. 
Frequently two or three hundred books 
are sent to the schools in one day, showing 
that the pupils of Newton drink deep at 
this Pierian Spring. At least the teachers 
and librarians lead the children by the 
halter to the water; it is to be assumed that 
for the rest of their lives they will really 
prefer to read the " Prolegomena and Meta- 
physical Foundations of Ratiocination" 



NEWTQN CHARITIES 



81 



rather than "The Pirate's Bride" and 
similar works. 

Sunday Schools make use of the books 
also. They have collections of fifty to a 
hundred books which they keep for per- 
haps three months at a time, and then 
change for a new selection. 

Newton has scores, perhaps hmidreds, 
perhaps thousands, possibly millions, of 
clubs. These clubs find the library abso- 
lutely indispensable for their work. The 
books are more than pleased, they are 
an.xious to receive invitations to the women's 
clubs. They go in great numbers when 
tliey are invited. The photogn^phs are 
also ready to accept, and proud of, invita- 
tions from club members. The library has 
an e.xcellent representative collection of 
photographs of the paintings of the old 
masters, and one illustrating sculpture. 
These have proved very helpful to teachers 
and students of art. There is also a large 
collection of geographical scenes which are 
much used by travel clubs, schools, and 
individuals. The stereoscope and stereo- 
scopic views have also proved very helpful 
and entertaining, both in the library and 
for circulation. Cases have been made to 
hold a stereoscope and fifty or one hundred 
views of different countries. Lantern slides 
have recently been ordered, and will soon 
be ready to loan to those having the lan- 
tern and wishing the pictures for lectures, 
talks, etc. 

There is a good selection of sheet music 
which is used by the music lovers. The 
collection numbers about six hundred vol- 
umes, and additions are made from time 
to time. 

A very full card catalogue at the main 
building helps students and readers to dis- 
cover the resources of the library, and 
efi'orts are being made to duplicate the card 
catalogue at the various branches. The 
recent additions are catalogued in these, 
and it is hoped that gradually, by working 



backwards, the branch catalogues will tell 
more and more the contents of the whole 
library. Bulletins are issued ten times a 
year, and weekl}- lists of new books are 
printed in the local papers. 

All those in the library and its branches 
have to know ever}-thing. They have many 
questions asked them and they always an- 
swer them, — correctly, perhaps, if they 
have had previously a chance to look up 
the answers. A library is expected to be 
ready to solve any problem that may be 
propounded. The following are some of 
the conundrums at which the Newton 
Library has tried its hand: — What is the 
connection between Thunias Jcffirson and 
horned frogs? How cxiilaiii the mrpuscu- 
lar theory of light in coiuradi-tiiu lion to the 
wave theory ? What is the rema inder of the 
poem 

"In fourteen hundred and ninety-two 
Columbus sailed the ocean blue" ? 
How find material for a debate on the 
tariff? What is the best' thing on the 
manners and customs of the Sa.xons and 
Normans before the Conquest ? How find 
an article that came out five or si.x years 
ago on athletics? The best brief outline 
of the "Canterbury Tales"; the best work 
on the earlier poertis of Virgil, before the 
/Eneid; a few books on the social life of 
Holland at the time (if Fran> Hals; -the 
book on Renaissance An hittn tiire; some- 
thing in German ahciul IKiiiriih Heine; 
the up-to-date stati^tit- ni' iinciiiiicrance in 
Norway; books for iiualiil-; li.ic)k> to read 
aloud; a killing book (that is, bloodshed 
and battle); the book of Life; poems on 
politeness; Did Shakespeare write Shake- 
speare ? A synopsis of Herbert Spencer's 
philosophy; something on methodized re- 
productive invention, " for we are reading 
'Quentin Durward' at school, and that, 
you know, is original invention." If our 
Newton Library cannot meet such demands 
it is not a perfect library. 



NEWTON CHARITIES 



THE NEWTON HOSPITAL 

THE history of the Newton Hospital 
may be grouped under four chap- 
ters: I. How there came to be a 
hospital in Newton; II. What the hospital 
has done to relieve suffering here; III. 



How it has benefited well people ; IV. What 
it has done for other places. These chap- 
ters fully written out would be of consider- 
able length, for there is much to tell, but 
as space is limited here only the briefest 
outline of the story can now be told. 



NEWTON CHARITIES 



83 



Those who would know more, especially 
concerning names, dates, statistics, methods, 
and various other details, are referred to 
the reports which have been printed each 
year, and to the records which have been 
carefully kept. 

I. HOW THERE CAME TO BE A HOSPITAL 
IN NEWTON 

There were very few hospitals in this 
countr}' twenty-five years ago. Some of 
the large cities had institutions of consider- 
able size, and here 
and there were 
smaller ones erect- 
ed and endowed 
through the gener- 
osity of wealthy 
persons as memo- 
rials. Very few per- 
sons then had any 
expectation that the 
day would come 
when in almost any 
community of ten 
thousand people a 
weU-equipped hos- 
pital could be estab- 
lished and main- 
tained. This latter 
fact has now been 
demonstrated so 
that we find in ever}- 
direction the small 
hospital. 

The Newton Hos- 
pital has the honor 
of being a pioneer 
in the work of showing the possibility 
of small hospitals. The need of it 
was felt here long before the hospital 
was established, for there were delays and 
difficulties in transporting the sick and the 
injured to Boston institutions, and some- 
times, owing to the crowded condition of 
those places, the applications from outsiders 
could not be considered. Beside this the 
improvements made in medical and surgical 
practice demanded conditions and appli- 
ances which were better provided in a 
hospital than in many homes. 

To some persons who were consulted it 
seemed to be so great an undertaking to 
start a hospital here that they doubted its 
feasibility. There were others, however, 
who had studied the matter with greater 
care, and who believed that the movement 



would meet the favor of the Great Physi- 
cian. After numerous conferences and 
meetings, extending over several years, 
the hospital was begun. The first meet- 
ing for conference was held in 1880. 
The first building was opened in 1886. 
There were two measures adopted which 
were novel and which seemed to some 
almost impracticable then. The trustees 
agreed that the two leading schools of med- 
icine should meet here upon equal terms, 
and that no resident physician should be 




KICK \-IEW, DENNISON CHILDREN'S AVARD 



placed at its head, but that the internal man- 
agement should be in charge of a matron 
under the general guidance of a medical 
board. It had been believed by some that 
"old school" and "new school" practi- 
tioners could not be brought together in any 
cooperative work, but the experiment begun 
here has been successful. It was thought 
too that a IkmiI ]ih\.si( ian with assistants was 
necessary for the .successful management of 
any hospital, but it was soon shown here that 
the trained nurse as a matron with executive 
ability was equal to what was required. 

One other fact to be borne in mind is 
that Newton had then, as it has now, a 
number of intelligent and skilled physicians, 
surgeons and specialists always willing 
to give most freely of all they had to the 
building up of this institution. There is 



84 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON 



no money equivalent that would enable us 
to say what the value of the services of 
these men has been. Enthusiasm, learn- 
ing, and time have been their offering to 
this remarkable success. 

Newton also had then some citizens who 
were interested in all benevolent enter- 
prises and who were willing to study this 
matter. Was a hospital really needed 
here ? Was the scheme practicable ? The 
friends of the movement soon found them- 
selves confronted by two classes of objectors. 
One class was made up of people in com- 
fortable circumstances who declared that 
they needed no hospital for themselves. 
They could get what they required in their 
own homes or in private institutions. , The 
other class was made up of people who 
looked suspiciously at all hospitals as places 
where those who could not get well at 
home were sent to die. With some there 
wa« almost a superstitious dread that if 
they went to a hospital they would never 
come out alive. These objections had to 
be overcome, and it took time and trouble 
to overcome them, but at length a small 
sum of money was collected, a site bought, 
and the first buildings were erected. 

On the sth of June, 1886, the hospital 
was opened. There is a great contrast 
between the appearance of the property 
as it was that June day and as we find it 
now, twenty-one years later. Then two 
wooden buildings, now a group consisting 
of six wooden buildings and eleven well- 
appointed brick buildings. But it has not 
reached its limit yet, for other additions are 
contemplated. 

II. WHAT THE NEWTON HOSPITAL HAS 
DONE TO RELIEVE SICK AND SUFFERING 
PEOPLE IN NEWTON 

It was the thought of some of its founders _ 
tliat perhaps twenty-five or thirty or, at the 
most, fifty persons might be treated each 
}'ear. One new patient each week would 
have been a large estimate. The admis- 
sions the very first year, 1886, were 40. 
The second 3'ear the number was 121. It 
was 927 in 1904, and 950 in 1905. The 
highest number was 998 in 1899. The 
whole number for 20 years has been 10,950, 
an average of 547 for each year. Who can 
put into language what it means to offer 
shelter and treatment to such an army? 
Some of them came too late to be cured, so 
far as we could see, and the Great Dis- 



poser of events alone can solve the mysteries 
of life and death in other cases, but the 
number of cured cases, or improved, has 
been very large, reaching a percentage of 
over 92 per cent, of those admitted. 

But this does not tell the whole story, for the 
spread of disease has been checked in homes 
and neighborhoods and the dread of it has 
been relieved. Still more, the principles 
of healthful living have been taught by 
precept and by example, and the restored 
patient has gone back home, in many in- 
stances, to be an advocate of more whole- 
some conditions. A kindly spirit has 
always pervaded the institution. Doctors 
and nurses have won the affection of pa- 
tients, and people have gone away not only 
well in body, but cheered and refreshed and 
encouraged to take up their work in life 
again. This feature of the hospital has 
always been noted. Now and then some 
one has not fitted in with his surroundings, 
or the querulousness of sickness has pre- 
vented his appreciating what has been done 
for him, but ordinarily the patient has left 
the hospital the friend of the hospital. 

It must not be overlooked that the people 
who have enjoyed the benefit of the hos- 
pital are not only those who have come 
here for treatment, but their families and 
the neighborhood in which they live, es- 
pecially in the case of contagious diseases. 
We may say that the cost of maintaining 
the hospital has been repaid by the in- 
creased protection which the isolation of 
patients has secured to others, and by the 
speedy restoration of sick people to their 
usual employments. As an economic meas- 
ure a community finds it profitable to 
ward off sickness from its people as much 
as it can, and to hasten the recovery of the 
health of those who are overcome. This 
last remark leads us to the third chapter 
of this short history. 

III. HOW THE HOSPITAL HAS BENEFITED 
WELL PEOPLE IN NEWTON 

One very important matter has been 
stated, viz. protection against disease, as 
well as attempting to cure disease. The 
home and the surroundings of every citizen 
have been made safer because of the estab- 
lishment of the hospital. 

Then too the character of the medical 
and surgical practice of all reputable 
physicians in Newton has been improved 
ijy the presence of the hospital here, for 



NEWTON CHARITIES 



85 



the institution registers whatever advances 
are made in medicine and surgery. The 
best appliances, the best remedies, the 
most successful methods become known in 
hospital practice, and the doctors in the 
vicinity may thus keep themselves in 
touch with the improvements made in their 
profession. The hospital is not a selfish 
rival, but really a helper of every doctor, 
a sharer with all of whatever is best, and 
consequently every family in Newton reaps 
whatever advantage comes from the dis- 
covery of better methods of caring for the 
sick and the injured. 

There is a form of usefulness for which 
the hospital is responsible, but it can hardly 
be expressed in words. It has been very 
helpful to well people in giving them oppor- 
tunity to follow out the teachings of Him 
who went about doing good. It is a con- 
stant reminder that they should show sym- 
pathy for all who in this transitory life 
are overcome by disease or accident. They 
have learned that it is more blessed to 
give than to receive. If it were proper 
here to quote from the minutes and resolu- 
tions adopted from time to time, or to 
repeat the stories told to groups of friends, 
it would be easy to show that some of those 
who tried to help the hospital found their 
own lives greatly enriched, and grew in 
beauty and strength of character. 

IV. WHAT THE HOSPITAL HAS DONE OUT- 
SIDE OF NEWTON 

Reference has already been made to its 
having been a pioneer in the work of the 
small hospital. It became a model after 
which many small hospitals in other places 
have been fashioned, and it has steadily 
kept itself in the forefront in the character 
of its buildings and the effectiveness of its 
administration. Newton people may feel 
an honest pride in knowing that all over 
the land the Newton Hospital has long 
been highly regarded by people who are 
interested in the best methods of hospital 
construction and management. 

There is one branch of the hospital work 
which has been especially helpful outside 
of our city — the School for Nurses. It 
graduated its first class in 1890 and up to 
the present time has sent out about 150 
well-trained nurses. In various hospitals 
and institutions far and near, and in many 
cities and towns, these graduates are now 
found doing well and faithfully the work 



for which they were fitted, and showing 
that their training received here was broad 
and complete. Our graduate nurses would 
certainly do honor to any institution, and 
so when we speak of the work of the hospital 
as extending bevond our city we have the 
right to point to our nurses and say, "These 
efficient workers received their training 
in Newton." 

One of the most important influences 
which our hospital has e.xerted outside 
of the city in which it is placed is in en- 
couraging other people to establish hos- 
pitals in their own communities. Without 
repeating what has been said as to its doing 
pioneer work for small hospitals in the way 
of demonstrating their possibility, let it be 
noted that our hospital has helped the 
growth of the view now extensively held, 
that any city to be in the line of the for- 
ward movement must have in it the Church, 
the School House, the Public Library, and 
the Hospital. 

George W. Shinn. 



THE NEWTON HOSPITAL AID 
ASSOCIATION 

On May 5, 1885, ground was broken for 
the first building to be erected by the 
Newton Cottage Hospital Corporation. 
On September 24th of the same year, an 
organization of women was effected, under 
the name of the Newton Hospital Aid 
Association, the object of which was "to 
furnish the hospital and to assist in its 
maintenance." 

President, vice-president, secretary, treas- 
urer, and a director from each ward of the 
city were elected at this meeting, which 
was large and enthusiastic. Proffers of 
assistance poured in from individuals, 
church organizations, children's clubs, and 
societies of all sorts, and a season of great 
activity was thus inaugurated. This little 
band of directors— whose numbers were 
later largely increased — labored most de- 
votedly, personally soliciting gifts of all 
kinds, membership fees, and contributions 
of money, and did much also to disarm 
prejudice, correct misapprehension, and 
establish confidence in the new project. 

The hospital was opened June 5, 1886. 
At the close of this year the association 
had secured $3726.32, and its membership 
numbered 410. In the early years, besides 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON 



furnishing wards and supplying needs 
from month to month, the association con- 
tributed largely to the running expenses of 
the hospital. In 1888 the buildings were 
repainted, $150 was appropriated for 
surgical instruments, and a vote was 
passed to devote $300 annually to the 
support of a free bed; in 1890, $700 was 
given to furnish contagious and private 
wards; soon after this internal repairs 
were made in the Administration Building; 
in 1892, $250 (afterwards increased by 
subscriptions to $574) was appropriated 
as a memorial to Miss Palmer, and was 
later used in furnishing the front room in 
the Nurses' Home. In 1898, $1500 was 
collected towards furnishing new wards, 
and a large reception, held at the hospital 
November 14th, increased public interest, 
which had been newly aroused by the 
opening of the Haskell-Emerson Operating 
Building, the Eldredge, Dennison, and 
Mellen Bray wards. 

At the annual meeting, January 17, 
1899, a resolution was passed establishing 
an endowment fund for the benefit of the 
hospital. Then, in quick succession were 
furnished the new laundry, the new diph- 
theria and scarlet fever buildings, and the 
new Thayer ward. When these latter 
were opened by the trustees another large 
reception was held, giving the public an 
opportunity to inspect all the hospital 
buildings. 

In April, 1902, the association entered 
upon its crowning work by voting to raise 
$3000 for a new kitchen and bakery. 
Zealously and steadily was this work 
pushed to completion, though it was never 
allowed to interfere with the regular ap- 
propriations for the free bed and endow- 
ment fund or the liberal supply of ne- 
cessities for the hospital, reported from 
month to month. Not only $3000, but 
over $10,000, was secured, and the new 
building was erected and named in memory 
of the beloved president, who had labored 
devotedly for it, the "Harriet Gould Paine 
Domestic Building." 

On May i, 1906, a large reception and 
donation party was held at the hospital, 
when Ellison Hall, the Domestic Building, 
the diet kitchen, and other new rooms in 
the Administration Building were opened 
to the public. This gathering was so 
successful, both socially and as affording 
substantial aid to the hospital, that it has 



been decided to make it of annual re- 
currence, upon the first day of May. 

It should be stated that two members 
of the board of directors are from Wellesley; 
the residents of that town, besides other 
donations, contribute $300 annually for 
the support of a free bed. 

In this sketch of what has been accom- 
plished in its twenty years of service, 
representing an outlay of nearly $34,000, 
it must be clearly stated, in closing, that 
the Hospital Aid Association recognizes 
that all its efforts would have been of no 
avail but for the generous support of the 
citizens of Newton and their great liberality 
towards the sick and suffering of their city. 
M.AEY A. Bellows. 



THE NEWTON HOSPITAL CATHO- 
LIC AID SOCIETY 

This society was organized in April, 1905, 
its object being to assist the hospital in 
caring for patients who are unable to receive 
necessary medical attention in their own 
homes. The society is composed of mem- 
bers of the five Catholic parishes of New- 
ton, and has a president, two vice-presi- 
dents, secretary, and treasurer, with an 
executive board of twenty, four from each 
parish. In June, two months after its 
organization, the society was able to give 
to the hospital six hundred dollars, for the 
maintenance of two free beds, and in April 
of the following year the same amount was 
donated. The membership fee is one dollar 
per year, and there is also an honorary 
membership fee of not less than fi\'e dol- 
lars. 

Entertainments have been given twice 
each year, which have added quite materi- 
ally to the funds of the society, and at the 
same time have been a source of much 
pleasure to the members and their guests. 
Theres.\ a. Holdex. 

THE NEWTON DISTRICT NURSING 
ASSOCIATION 

This association was organized in May, 
1898, its object to be caring for the sick 
poor at their homes, and giving instruction 
in home nursing and wholesome living, by 
hospital trained nurses. At half past seven 
in the morning, the district nurse, bag in 
hand, containing all the most necessary 
articles used in the sick-room, starts on her 



NEWTON CHARITIES 



87 



daily rounds. Many days she visits from 
ten to twelve patients, bathing the babies, 
making comfortable the mothers, dressing 
wounds, putting in order the room, and 
teaching the simple rules of ventilation, 
hygienic living, and generally carrying out 
the orders of the physician in charge. 
Such is the work of the district nurse. 

Another important feature of the work is 
the Supply Closet, in which are kept baby 
clothes, night-gowns, and such articles as 
are needed in caring for the sick, but are 
not found in many poor families. 

A small charge is made for each call, 
enough to pay car-fare of the nurse. Many 
patients cannot pay anything. 

The officers of the association are presi- 
dent, vice-president, secretary, assistant 
secretary, treasurer, and board of mana- 
gers. There is also a committee on sup- 
plies, made up of two representatives from 
each ward. 

The funds of the association are obtained 
by donations and membership fees. The 
annual dues are two dollars for women and 
five dollars for men. 

In April, 1906, the nursing plan of the 
District Nursing Association was changed, 
and instead of the managers engaging and 
controlling the nurses, their management 
was given to the Newton Hospital. The 
district nursing work is now under the care 
of a superintendent of nurses, one trained 
in district nursing work, under whose direc- 
tion and instruction the undergraduate hos- 
pital nurses visit and attend the sick. The 
management feel that an important step 
forward was taken when this union with 
the hospital was consummated. The asso- 
ciation still retains its organization, and 
must, as in the past, raise the funds and 
pay all the e.xpenses. 

May H. Coolidge. 



THE CITY FARM 
Records of the j-ear 1807 show that at 
that time there was no almshouse in New- 
ton, the poor being boarded out to the low- 
est bidder, a practice which must in many 
instances have led to great hardship. In 
1820, we find records of an almshouse in 
Auburndale, and in 1840 a Poor Farm was 
established at Waban, or, as it was then 
known, "the Collins Neighborhood." 

In 1900, a section of twenty-five acres of 
well-wooded land on Winchester Street, 



partly bordering on Charles River, was se- 
cured, and upon it was erected a commo- 
dious, convenient almshouse, in every way 
suitable to its purpose and up to date. 
Many a well-to-do housekeeper would 
eagerly welcome the neat labor-saving ar- 
rangements of its kitchen and offices. 

The front of the house contains the hand- 
some and comfortable apartment of the 
superintendent and matron. Of the two 
or three bedrooms in its upper story, the 
matron has chosen for her own the one 
nearest the wards, that she may hear if any 
inmate knocks for assistance during the 
night. Such a knock one night this winter 
roused the superintendent to the knowledge 
that the barn of an unoccupied farm, ad- 
joining, was on fire, and enabled him by 
prompt action to save the house. 

There are two wards in each wing, the 
men's on one side, the women's on the 
other. Each of the four has its own bath- 
room. There is a sitting-room for the men, 
where they are allowed to smoke, and one 
for the women, which, like the men's, is 
abundantly provided with books, news- 
papers, and magazines, gifts from individ- 
uals in the community. Each inmate has 
a separate room, a lu.xury which really 
seems to take something from one's natu- 
ral dread of "the poorhouse." Some of 
these rooms are well furnished with furni- 
ture brought by the occupants from the 
homes they could no longer support. 
Many are adorned with pictures, cards, 
and ornaments, relics of better days, or 
gifts from friends or visitors. All are 
clean, warm, and comfortable. The floors 
are bare except for rugs braided by women 
inmates. 

An old man, who has died within a few 
years, took great delight in cutting out 
figures of people and animals from old 
magazines and papers. He did this with 
so much neatness and accuracy that he 
was allowed to paste them on the bare 
white walls of his room, where, covering 
all but one corner, they still remain, a 
monument to his taste and industry. 

Men and women take their meals in 
separate dining-rooms. Inspection of the 
kitchen, store-room, and pantries shows 
that the food is abundant, of good quality, 
well cooked, and of wholesome variety. In 
cases of sickness and special diet, the in- 
mates are served in their own rooms, and 
then the women have the pleasure of using 



8S 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON 



the individual cup, saucer, and spoon which 
in almost every instance is prominent among 
the adornments. 

A capable cook is hired, and for the rest, 
the matron has the assistance of such of the 
women as are able to work. The superin- 
tendent has one hired man, and with the 
further help of the male inmates, brings 
more and more of the land into cultivation 
each year, raising vegetables enough not 
only for his large household, but to sell. 
He intends during the coming summer to 
devote a portion of the land to the raising 
of small fruits. 

There are at present (February, 1907) 
eleven men and ten women in the house. 
Of these, nine are Catholics. They attend 
church at their pleasure, health and 
weather permitting. Two are between 
forty and fifty, the youngest of the inmates ; 
three are over eighty. Two were born in 
the almshouse, and one of these, aged 
sixty-three, has been a constant resident 
since 1857. Two others were admitted in 
that year, but their residence has not been 
continuous. During the last twenty years 
there have been but twenty-three deaths in 
the house. The number of inmates has 
varied from si-xteen to forty-five, with an 
average of thirty-seven. 

The condition of its almshouse should 
be a matter of interest to every citizen in 
any town, but in Newton the number of 
visitors from outside the city, drawn by its 
reputation as a well-equipped, well-man- 
aged almshouse, is far larger than that of 
our own citizens coming to see if our poor 
are cared for as they ought to be. Those 
of us who are familiar with it, can testify 
to the excellent judgment and wise admin- 
istration of the superintendent, and the 
efficiency and kindness of his wife, which 
has led some of us to think of her always as 
the Little Mother of our Poor. 

Mary R. M.^rtin. 



THE ASSOCIATED CHARITIES 

On the isth of March, 1889, there as- 
sembled at the house of Dr. Mary E. 
Bates, at that time a popular physician 
of Newton Centre, a band of women whose 
object was to form an organization for 
charitable work. Some daring spirit pro- 
posed that an Associated Charities be 
formed. The profound silence that fol- 
lowed this startling proposal was broken 



by a timid voice saying, "That is a large 
undertaking." The motion was made, 
however, and carried, and then and there 
was founded the Associated Charities of 
Newton, with the avowed object of "aiding 
and elevating the poor and unfortunate 
among the inhabitants of Newton." Dr. 
Bates was chosen president, Mrs. Richard 
Rowe and Mrs. R. D. Morehouse vice- 
presidents, Mrs. John W. Brigham sec- 
retary, and ^Irs. Henry W. Downs 
treasurer. 

On the 9th of April, a brilliant meeting 
was held in Masonic Hall, then in Central 
Block, Newtonville. It was opened by 
prayer by Rev. Dr. Alvah Hovey, after 
which Hon. Robert Treat Paine, Rev. 
Edward Everett Hale, Nathan Alosman 
of the Newton Poor Department, and 
others prominent in philanthropic circles 
addressed a large audience of representa- 
tive citizens. 

The pioneers took great pains to ac- 
quaint themselves with the nature of the 
work they had undertaken, visiting the 
offices of the Boston Associated Chanties, 
and making a careful study of its methods 
and its literature. The work was con- 
tinued with increasing zeal for more than 
a year. In October, 1890, Dr. Bates 
resigned her position, and a new organiza- 
tion was effected and a constitution adopted. 
Rev. R. A. White, of the Universalist 
Church in Newtonville, was elected presi- 
dent. 

The presidents since then have been 
Rev. WiUiam A. Lamb, Rev. Dr. A. S. 
Twombley, Rev. I. A. Priest, Herbert S. 
Chase, David E. Baker, M.D., and Charles 
S. Ensign. 

In 1893, a bequest of $500 from Charles 
E. Billings of Newton made it necessary 
that the society be incorporated, and a 
charter was secured through the assistance 
of Mr. Lawrence Bond. 

Besides the work naturally pertaining 
to a society of organized charity — investi- 
gation, registration, and friendly visiting — 
the association maintains a Provident 
Branch, which receives and distributes 
clothing, and gives relief in emergencies; 
a Labor Bureau, which has helped many 
a widow, or unfortunate wife, to support 
her family; and a Penny Savings System, 
whose influence upon the community in 
promoting habits of thrift is incalculable. 

How far it has carried out its original 



NEWTON CHARITIES 



S9 



intention of "aiding and elevating the 
poor and unfortunate annnig the inhabi- 
tants of Newton," the eommunity must 
judge. !Mary R. Martin. 



THE REBECCA POMROY NEWTON 
HOME FOR ORPHAN GIRLS 
The Pomroy Home for Orphan Girls 
was opened in November, 1872, the day 
after the destructive Boston Fire. When 
the Boston Children's Aid Society decided 



The Orphans' Home has always sheltered 
from four to twenty of Newton's destitute 
girls, between the ages of two and eighteen, 
and the strong influence of that first beauti- 
ful superintendent, "Auntie Pomroy," has 
never ceased to be felt. It has always been 
a real home, for its children are taught to 
aid in every department of household work, 
thus preparing them for future usefulness 
in the world, as house-maids or mothers. 
Homes, too, are secured for them^after 
they leave, where they can, if possible, 'be 




POMROY HOME, XEWTO> 



to give up its girls' home in Newton Centre, 
Miss Alary C. Shannon, Mi.ss Mary 
Shannon, and Mrs. Daniel Furber, benevo- 
lent, strong, generous women, felt it neces- 
sary and wise to start in Newton a charity 
of the same kind. They asked Mr. Na- 
thaniel T. Allen of West Newton to act 
as their president, which he did till his 
death, a period of over thirty years; and 
these, together with Mrs. Rebecca Pomroy, 
as superintendent, started the Orphans' 
Home, the first real charitable institution 
in Newton. 

Having voluntary promises of aid from 
ladies and gentlemen throughout Newton, 
a home was secured, at first on Church 
Street, and afterwards on Hovey Street, 
which residence they still occupy and own. 



members of the family rather than mere 
servants. Then, too, the children enter 
the excellent public schools of the city, 
like other children of Newton, and so are 
not e.xclusively by themselves. 

Through the incessant and untiring 
efforts of the founders, the Pomroy Home 
has received the sympathy and attention 
of the whole community. The clothing 
is mostly provided by friends, also milk, 
vegetables, fruit, and groceries; while the 
past year many kind friends have improved 
the appearance of the house, by painting, 
papering, and having hard-wood floors 
laid. Not the least among its benefits 
is the influence it has had in developing 
and sustaining the loving, bountiful charity 
which has enabled the Home to welcome. 



90 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON 



provide, and care for the large numljer 
who have sought its protection. 

The Home is now in the hands of an able 
president, Mr. Charles A. Haskell, and a 
board of directors — Mr. Hiram E. Barker, 
:Mr. Oliver M. Fisher, Miss Lucy Allen, 
Mrs. Andrew B. Cobb, Mrs. Charles A. 
Davenport, Mrs. George S. Harwood, 
Mrs. S. E. Howard, Mrs. H. M. Taylor, 
Mrs. Arthur C. Walworth, and Miss Anna 
M. Whiting — chosen from each denomina- 
tion in Newton, who co-operate with the 
superintendent. Miss Hayes, a woman well 
titted for the position. 

Lucy Ellis AllexX. 



THE MOTHERS' REST ASSOCLV 
TION OF NEWTON CENTRE 
In the spring of 1900, Dr. Everett D. 
Burr, pastor of the First Baptist Church 
at Newton Centre, called the women of his 
parish together to tell them of the suffering 
he had seen in the tenement district of 
Boston in the heat of summer. He be- 
lieved that if the great need were realized, 
a place might be provided to which the 
women and children of that district might 
be invited for rest and fresh air. 

Out of this appeal grew the work of the 
Mothers' Rest. During the three summer 
months it takes mothers with their little 
children from the stifiing tenements of the 
city, where the heavy air is laden with 
impurities of both house and street, where 
the mother's strength fails and the babies 
sicken and often die for lack of fresh air 
and proper food, and gives them two weeks 
of rest and comfort in the pure air of the 
country, under God's blue sky and spread- 
ing trees. It gives them nourishing food 
and loving care, and lets them watch the 
little ones grow strong and rosy in the 
sunny fields. It sends them back to their 
homes with new'strength and courage for 
the long year of struggle, having e.xperi- 
enced a real home and learned how little 
children should be fed and cared for, and, 
best of all, with a new belief that we are all 
children of one Father who has taught us to 
love one another. 

For the first 3'ear the old "town farm," 
then recently vacated, at Waban, was 
secured at a nominal rent. It was wonder- 
ful how the idea took with the people. 
The attics of Newton Centre supplied most 
of the furniture; much was given bv friends 



in Boston; carpenters, plumbers, and 
painters gave their services; marketmen 
added large gifts to orders for groceries and 
provisions; and on July i, 1900, the first 
party was received, for two weeks of rest 
and comfort. During that summer 193 
guests were entertained — 78 mothers and 
115 children. 

Although the old farm-house was torn 
down by its owners before the next summer, 
it was decided that the work must go on, 
and the old mansion house on Winchester 
Street, Newton Highlands, was rented in 
the spring of 1901. This year 74 mothers 
and 88 children w-ere cared for, in parties 
of from 13 to 15 mothers with their chil- 
dren under five years of age. They en- 
joyed perfect rest and freedom, the only 
requirements being the care of their own 
bedrooms and obedience to the few rules 
necessary for the orderly running of a large 
family and for the comfort of the whole 
company. 

For one more year the women of this 
church maintained the Mothers' Rest, but 
when the season of 1903 opened, it was felt 
that the experimental stage of the work 
was ended. The women of the whole vil- 
lage were interested, and there was a de- 
mand that the enterprise should be placed 
on a permanent basis. A mass meeting 
of all the women of Newton Centre was 
called to consider organizing an interde- 
nominational association to conduct the 
work in future. The result was the adop- 
tion of a constitution and the election of 
officers, and, on May 4, 1903, a corporation 
was formed under the laws of Massachusetts 
with the name of "The Mothers' Rest 
Association of Newton Centre." A mem- 
bership fee of two dollars, or its equivalent, 
was established, making any woman of 
Newton Centre a voting member, and the 
new association began its work with 179 
members. Two years later a plan was 
adopted by which any one not eligible to 
regular membership might become an as- 
sociate member on the payment of two 
dollars or more annually. 

In 1904 the sum of $1000 had been set 
aside from the balance in the treasury, as a 
fund towards a new building, and in May, 
1905, this sum was increased by the gen- 
erous gift of $7500 from ^Ir. F. H. Schirmer 
and others, and the plan for a new home 
was enthusiastically taken up by the asso- 
ciation. The following year was one of 



NEWTON CHARITIES 



91 



strenuous effort on the part of the finance 
committee to complete the desired sum of 
$15,000 for the purchase of land and build- 
ings for a permanent institution. In May, 
1906, the association was able to buy, at a 
very favorable price, a farm of nine acres, 
situated on High Street in Highlandville, 
with homestead, farmer's cottage, barn, and 
other buildings included. The Mothers' 
Rest is now established on very high ground 
with beautiful and extensive views; the 
drinking water is of the purest quality, and 
the fine fruit and shade trees, with the large 
enclosed grounds, make it an ideal country 
home. Because of the late purchase of the 
property and the necessary repairs upon the 
dwelling-house, it was not possible to en- 
tertain as many guests as usual this last 
season, but it is expected that the build- 
ings will be enlarged before another year, 
so that at least the average number may 
be cared for in the new home. 

During the seven years of its existence the 
association has gained experience and 
wisdom in the administration of what it 
regards as a sacred trust, — the use of funds 
supplied freely by those interested in help- 
ing the unfortunate. No financial state- 
ment has been made in this sketch for the 
reason that a printed report is sent each 
year to every member and donor, giving 
full statistics of the work, including the 
treasurer's itemized report. Copies of 
this report can be obtained of Mrs. S. S. 
Widger, 45 Devon Road, Newton Centre. 
It may be of interest, however, to state that 
the expense per person has been found to be 
from fifty to seventy cents a day. 

With one exception, so far as the writer 
knows, this was the first work of the kind 
undertaken for mothers and children, and 
it has been itself the mother of many, dotting 
our New England hillsides with refuges for 
the city's poor — small, homelike places, 
teaching the beautiful lesson of God's 
brooding love. 

Annie Beecher Kend.-^ll. 



THE NEWTON HOME FOR AGED 
PEOPLE 

One of the most admirable benevolences 
in our city is the Newton Home for Aged 
People, made possible by the generous 
legacies of IVIr. and Mrs. Joseph L. Stone, 
formerly residents of West Newton, supple- 
mented by subscriptions from a number 



of other citizens. It is located at Newton 
Upper Falls, in a former residence of 
Otis Pettee, Esq., and is capable of ac- 
commodating fifteen persons. It is occu- 
pied to its full capacity, with a considerable 
waiting list. 

Its object is to give a pleasant and com- 
fortable home for respectable aged people 
of both sexes, not otherwise provided for. 
The history of its work since its establish- 
ment has abundantly proved the wisdom 
of its founders. Several of the aged people 
of our city have ended their days within 
its walls, surrounded with every needed 
comfort and watched over by loving min- 
istries. And there remain a happy and 
contented family who but for this Home 
might be deprived of many of the blessings 
which now cheer their declining years. 

The ladies of Newton are largely repre- 
sented in its management, and have taken 
a great interest in it, often visiting the 
inmates and donating to it gifts which 
have added to the well-being and enjoy- 
ment of the old people. 

There is an urgent call for larger accom- 
modations, and as soon as sufficient funds 
are forthcoming to meet the increased ex- 
pense of maintaining an addition to the 
present building, it will be erected. 

Henry E. Cobb. 



THE WORKING BOYS' HOME 
INDUSTRIAL SCHOOL 

Among the charitable institutions of 
Newton is one which, because of its char- 
acter and the excellence of its work, has 
always appealed to the heart of the com- 
munity, and in promoting its success the 
people of Newton have responded in the 
most generous and appreciative manner. 
The \\'orking Boys' Home Industrial 
School, situated in Newton Highlands, 
was founded in May, 1896. Its object is 
the care and education of homeless boys, 
irrespective of race, creed, or color, and its 
doors are always open to boys of this 
condition. Although the majority of its 
inmates are from Boston and other large 
cities in the Commonwealth, there have 
always been some from the city of Newton, 
and its charity has thereby received prac- 
tical demonstration in the community 
itself. Nothing is demanded of appli- 
cants other than the evidence of home- 



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NEWTON CHARITIES 



93 



lessiiess, which alone suffices to insure for 
them a welcome to the Home. 

The boys are trained in the manual arts, 
that when they leave the institution they 
may be equipped for the business of life; 
and the excellent moral training received 
at the hands of an efficient management is 
calculated to make them worthy as well 
as useful citizens. To maintain this work 
the various trades in which the boys are 



which is generally overlooked in consider- 
ing its fundamental object, the care of the 
homeless, is that it saves, these boys from 
the inevitable discredit of the reformatory, 
which would be their only refuge did not 
the Home exist. By this is not meant 
that its inmates are unworthy or vicious, 
but rather that, generally speaking, the 
state makes provision only in this manner 
for those who are dependent, and too 




THE WORKIXG BOYS HOME 



engaged contribute something, chiefly the 
Printing Room, where is published a 
quarterly magazine, "The Working Boy," 
which enjoys a circulation of approximately 
50,000. Connected with this is a job 
printing department, the merit of whose 
work is not unknown to the citizens of 
Newton, many of whom, in the commend- 
able desire to aid so deserving a charity, 
are liberal patrons of the department. 
This is one of the principal means of sup- 
port to the Home. Apart from these the 
chief source of income is the voluntary 
charity of friends, and it is certainly a 
splendid tribute to the generosity of these 
friends that so large an enterprise has been 
successfully conducted during the eleven 
years of its existence. 

.\ feature of the work of the institution 



young to provide for themselves. With 
its magnificent buildings and e.xtensive 
grounds the Working Boys' Home is con- 
spicuous among the public institutions of 
the city. 

WlLLL^M H. McDONOUGH. 



THE NONANTUM BOYS' CLUB 

The Nonantum Boys' Club, as a well- 
organized club for boys, has been in ex- 
istence since 1899. The work is carried 
on by the Good Citizenship Association 
of Newton, a charitable corporation duly 
organized under the laws of Massachusetts, 
whose officers and members are as follows: 
President, Edwin O. Childs, Jr.; Treas- 
urer, .\lbert P. Carter; Clerk, Mrs. Mary 
Linder Goodwin. 



94 



THE :MIRR0R of NEWTON 



Through the generosity of Mrs. George 
Linder of Newton, the land and the build- 
ing known as the Athena?um Building, situ- 
ated on Dalby Street, in the Nonantum 
district of Newton, was deeded to the 
Good Citizenship Association, and here 
the work of the Nonantum Bovs' Club 
has been carried on. 

The first A'ear the club was not a success. 
Since then, it has been entirely successful. 
Up to January i, 1905, the club was under 
the charge of Mr. Edward L. Rand of 
Jamaica Plain, who acted as superin- 
tendent, with Mr. Charles E. Thrasher 
of Newton Highlands as assistant, and we 
record with deep satisfaction that our 
success is due largely to their tireless efforts. 
Since January i, 1905, Mr. Thrasher has 
served as superintendent, with Mr. Frank 
Halfrey as his assistant. 

The club is divided into two depart- 
ments: the senior department, under the 
supervision of Mr. Childs, and the junior 
department, under Messrs. Thrasher and 
Halfrey. The senior department, known 
as the Nonantum Athletic Association, is 
composed of fifty young men between the 
ages of eighteen and twenty-five years. 
The boys whose ages range from six to 
eighteen years compose the junior depart- 
ment. There are three hundred of the.se 
younger boys in our membership at present. 
The Seniors occupy the upper tloor in the 
club house, and the Juniors the lower 
floor. 

The object of the club is to help these 
young men and boys to establish or make 
a good character, and the motto of the club 
is "A better citizen." To this end, the 
club house is open every evening of the 
week, Sundays excepted, from October 
ist to June ist, and any boy or young 
man of Nonantum is entitled to its use. 
Books, games, and magazines are abun- 
dantly supplied for those who care to use 
them, and all that is possible is done to 
make the club attractive to the boys. 
Gymnastic apparatus, together with ' a 
shower bath, have recently been installed 
at the club house, and interest many of the 
boys. Thus the boys are kept off the 
streets at night and provided with a place 
where they can pass their evening hours 
in a good, wholesome way. Industrial 
classes have been conducted during si.x 
years of the club's existence, and instruction 
has been given to a large number of boys in 



carpentry, cane-seating, pyrography, and 
cobbling. Owing to the lack of room 
(for the boys have outgrown their club 
house), the industrial classes, with the 
e.xxeption of the class in shoemaking, have 
been given up. 

Our membership has greatly increased 
during the past three years, but unfort- 
unately there has been no corresponding 
increase in equipment and quarters. This 
has greatly handicapped our work, and 
yet we have done the best we could under 
the circumstances. 

The work of the Good Citizenship 
Association is carried on by the generous 
contributions of broad - minded, large- 
hearted, public-spirited citizens of Newton, 
who are interested in the boys of to-day 
who will be the men, the voters, the citizens 
of to-morrow. 

The interest of the boys in the club, their 
actions at the club house and on the street, 
all show the usefulness of the club and the 
good that has already been done. With 
sufficient room, there will be nothing to 
prevent Newton from having one of the best 
boys' clubs in the state. The boys are 
there, and if an increased interest is taken 
by the citizens of Newton in Nonantum, 
the mill district of our city, this good citi- 
zenship work will grow and accomplish 
even more in the future than it has in the 
past. 

Edwin O. Childs, Jr. 



THE DAY NURSERIES OF 
NE\\'TON 

This movement was started in Newton 
Centre in 1903, when the need of a day 
nursery there was felt by the ladies in that 
section. Through the efforts of Mrs. 
George N. Towle, Mrs. Wm. H. Coolidge, 
Mrs. Parker W. Whittemore, Mrs. Wm. B. 
Merrill, and Mrs. Charles L. Smith a day 
nursery was opened on March first of that 
year. They succeeded in obtaining one 
hundred and forty annual subscriptions 
amounting to $280, but the cost of main- 
taining the nursery was found to be $1000 
a year, and the difference was raised by 
these ladies through a fair or donations. 

Since the nursery was opened, it has had 
four matrons, two leaving on account of ill- 
health. The attendance in 1903 was 2,307, 
increasing to 2,395 i" 1904- ^'""i to 2,962 
in 1905, the average daily attendance being 



NEWTON CHARITIES 



95 



nine. These children represented twenty- 
four different families and four nation- 
alities, — Swedish, Irish, Italian, and Ameri- 
can. 

The physicians of Newton Centre gave 
their hearty support to the nursery, feeling 
that much good was accomplished there. 
Dr. George L. West was the visiting 
physician. In 1906, however, the attend- 
ance decreased very materially, and as the 
expense of running the nursery was large, 
it was decided by the officers and other 
ladies interested to close it until the need 
should seem more urgent. This accordingly 
was done on March i, 1907. 

During the past two years constant 
appeals for a day nursery in the Nonantum 
district have been made by the kinder- 
garten teacher of the Jackson School, to 
the various King's Daughters with whom 
she has come in contact through the Newton 
Industrial Club. In that section there are 
so many little children that the kinder- 
garten has an afternoon session to accom- 
modate those for whom there is no room 
in the morning. Many mothers went to 
the kindergartner, urging her to take 
children to both sessions, there being no 
place for them to stay except the street, 
until their parents returned from work. 
This is against the regulation of the school. 
Then children too young for the kinder- 
garten were brought for the same reason, 
and had to be turned away. Other stories 
of unfortunate or neglected children were 
heard, and in March, 1906, it was decided 
that a day nursery must be established. 
Accordingly, ilrs. Lawrence T. Sawyer, 
Mrs. Albert P. Carter, and Miss Annie C. 
Ellis visited nurseries already in operation, 
made a rough estimate of the cost, and be- 
gan raising the necessary funds. Many 
generous people responded. Those who 
had wealth gave money, others gave time 
or work, or the labor of their horses. Food, 
clothing, furniture, flowers, etc., were also 
contributed by many anxious to help. 

In July, with little money on hand, but 
an abiding faith in the generosity of Newton 
people, three rooms were engaged at 414 
Watertown Street, and an e.xcellent matron 
was found. The nursery opened on the 
4th of August. Since that time it has cared 
for fifty-nine different children from two 
months to ten years of age, representing 
thirty-five homes and nine nationalities, — 
American, Irish, Canadian, Italian, Hun- 



garian, Jewish, Swedish, Negro, and 
French. The average daily attendance has 
been about fifteen. The cost of conduct- 
ing the nursery is approximately twenty 
cents a day for each child; toward this 
the mother pays ten cents a day or five 
cents a half-day, so that those who are 
benefited bear a share of the e.xpense. 

In October the work of the management 
of the nursery became too arduous for the 
three who had undertaken it. So a meet- 
ing of all interested friends was called and 
an association was formed for its further 
administration and development. These 
officers were elected: President, Mrs. J. P. 
Tolman; Vice-President, Miss Annie C. 
Ellis; Treasurer, Mrs. Rebecca Sherman; 
Secretary, Mrs. Sara F. Wilkins. The 
nursery, with its bills all paid and three 
hundred dollars capital, was then turned 
o^•er to the Nonantum Day Nursery As- 
sociation, whose executive board, com- 
posed of directors, officers, and \isitors, 
have since managed its affairs. 

February i6th was an eventful day, for 
then the association became a corporation. 
On that date also the work was somewhat 
extended by forming an afternoon club 
for little girls, who had outgrown the nursery 
and were not old enough to join evening 
clubs. The intention is to continue the 
beneficent inliuence of the nursery as long 
as possible, and to keep these little ones off 
the street after school hours, thus trying to 
prevent them from learning all the evil of 
the world before they are ten years old. 
These club meetings are to be held in the 
open air as often as practicable, and the 
girls taught to "play fair" and gently. 

It is the hope of the corporation that 
some time it may have the control of a 
whole house to be used as a Neighborhood 
House, sufficiently large to accommodate 
the nursery, and contain a pla\^-room for 
the little girls' club and a club room where 
the Newton Industrial Club may hold its 
meetings and entertainments. 

The need of a day nursery in West 
Newton has been felt for some time, and in 
February, 1907, the ladies of that section 
met together at the house of Mrs. John W. 
Carter, and formed the West Newton Day 
Nursery Association. The officers of this 
association are: President, ]SIrs. C. H. 
Ames; Vice-presidents, :Mrs. J. T. Prince, 
Mrs. J. C. Jaynes, Mrs. G. A. Frost; 
Treasurer, ^Mrs. J. W'. Carter; .\ssistant- 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON 



treasurer, jMrs. Levi Warren; Secretary, 
Mrs. Wm. H. Young. There is a board 
of twenty directors, from which the finance 
committee is chosen, and an auxiliary 
board of twelve young ladies, of which 
Miss Carter is chairman. 

The association has secured the use of a 



commodious house on the corner of Elm 
and Webster Streets. The nuisery is being 
scientifically planned, and it is proposed to 
have it as nearly a model as possible, and 
to develop it into a Neighborhood House 
if opportunity ofi'ers. 

Annie Claflin Ellis. 



METROPOLITAN PARKS IN NEWTON 
BY J. c. brimbleco:^! 



THE present and potential beauties of 
the Charles River (which forms so 
large a portion of our boundary line) 
early attracted the attention of the IVIetro- 
politan Park Commission, and they now 
control almost the entire river frontage. 
In point of fact, the commission has ad- 
hered more closely in Newton to the orig- 
inal plan in creating the commission than 
an\^vhere else in the district. In this city 
the commission has acquired large holdings, 
simply with the intention of preserving for 
the future the natural beauties of the district. 
It has not attempted, as in other places, 
to construct boulevards and speedways, and 
provide music and other attractions which 
have added so largely to the debt and 
burden of taxation of the several cities 
and towns in Greater Boston. With the 
exception of the patrol of Charles River, 
made absolutely necessary by the summer 
exodus from Boston, and one ofiicer at 
Hemlock Gorge, the expense of mainte- 
nance of the park lands in this city is almost 
nothing. 

Hemlock Gorge, which includes the 
famous Echo Bridge, is perhaps the best 
known of the park holdings in this city. 
The remarkable echo under the arch of 
the Sudbury River aqueduct has always 
attracted much attention, and the com- 
mission deserves commendation for the 
manner in which it has preser^^ed the 
rocky, wooded shores of the river at this 
point. A new stone arched bridge, where 
Boylston Street crosses the river, a few 
hundred feet below Echo Bridge, was 
recently constructed at the joint expense 
of the park commission, the city, and the 
street railway company. From the centre 
of this bridge the eye is charmed by the 
quiet beauty of the view up the river, or by 
standing close to the parapet, one can 



witness the silver sheen of falling water 
over the artificial dam, nearer the bridge. 

At the Weston Bridge, near Norumbega 
Park, the commission has erected a sub- 
stantial guard house, fully equipped with 
life-saving apparatus and facilities for the 
Charles River patrol, which centres at this 
point. A superintendent and seven men 
are in charge during the summer time, 
from the Moody Street Bridge in Waltham 
to the Hemlock Gorge at Newton Upper 
Falls. This force has rendered efficient 
service in cases of accidents and in the 
surveillance of objectionable persons. 

The citv of Newton has co-operated 
with the Metropolitan Commission in the 
work of preserving the river front, and has 
turned over to the latter the control of 
large park areas in Auburndale and the 
Lower Falls. The holdings of the com- 
mission now amount to about 120 acres 
in Newton and large areas in the adjoining 
towns of \\'eston and Wellesley. 

An interesting feature of the ISIetropoli- 
tan system is the expense entailed upon 
the city. Under the first scheine of appor- 
tionment, Newton was not only assessed 
its share of the general burden, but paid 
also an added portion deducted from the 
poorer municipalities. The new appor- 
tionment made in 1906 is more equitable, 
and Newton pays a little over three per 
cent, of the cost of sinking funds, interest, 
and maintenance charges, amounting to 
$29,087.50 in 1906, with a few smaller 
assessments for special matters, such as 
Nantasket and Wellington bridge. 

While it is an open question whether 
Newton receives at the present time full 
consideration for this large assessment, 
ever}' one will concede that in Newton at 
least the commission has handled the park 
problem wisely and well. 




Courtesy o} ifr. Ellis .\foore 

THE BIRCHES, HEMLOCK GORGE, NEWTON UPPER FALLS 



VILLAGE IMPROVEMENT SOCIETIES 



THE NEWTON CENTRE IJ^IPROVE- 
MENT ASSOCIATION 

THIS association traces its descent from 
the Newton Centre Tree Club or- 
ganized in 1852 to beautify the vil- 
lage by planting trees and grading the 
Common near the present Mason School. 
The Tree Club ceased its activities in 1855, 
and it was not until 1869 that a somewhat 
similar organization came into being under 
the name of The Prudential Committee of 
the First School District of the Town of 
Newton. Questions of water and gas sup- 
ply, sewerage, fire and police protection, 
and railroad facilities vfere then considered, 
but an active organization was continued 
only a year or two. The old book of 
records started by the Tree Club and con- 
tinued by the Prudential Committee was 
preserved, however, and when the present 
Improvement Association was formed in 
1879 its records were entered alongside the 
others, as they have been in each succeed- 
ing year. 

Judge John Lowell was the first presi- 
dent of the Improvement Association, and 
its first work was to complete the work of 
the Tree Club by grading and planting the 
Common. To attempt any detailed state- 
ment of the association's activities would 
recjuire more space than can be allotted 
here, but some of the more important mat- 
ters may be mentioned. 

In addition to the Common the aqueduct 
in the rear of the fire station was graded 
and planted; the shores of Crystal Lake 
ha\e been improved; several plots of land 
at street junctions have been purchased 
and presented to the city for park purposes; 
for some years about six hundred dollars 
has been raised annually to provide the 
Fourth of July celebration at the lake; 
and during the '8o's and early '90's about 
twenty thousand dollars was raised among 
the citizens and, with ten thousand dol- 
lars appropriated by the city, expended 
in the purchase of our twenty acre play- 
ground. 

The association has also done effective 
work in connection with the abolition of 
grade crossings on the South Side, and 
within a few weeks the old Cousens Block at 



the corner of Beacon Street and Langley 
Road has been secured, in the hope that 
public-spirited citizens of Newton will com- 
plete the purchase and improve the ap- 
proach to the \-illage by throwing open the 
property for park purposes. In the early 
days many forms of social activity centred 
in the Improvement Association, and that 
this field, although long neglected, still 
ofifers opportunity is evidenced by the recent 
Village Night, when four hundred and 
fifty ladies and gentlemen gathered around 
the tables in Bray Hall, not alone to foster 
a village spirit, but to promote a broader 
interest in our beautiful city. 

Some years ago, when its a( tivity was at 
ebb, the association was regularh- incor- 
porated, and its affairs are now actively 
managed by an e.xecutive committee. The 
wisdom of this step is apparent, for while 
there are times when interest lags and little 
of importance seems to be accomplished, 
the association has never yet failed to form 
the nucleus around which public sentiment 
has gathered, or to furnish an effective 
organization when matters of general in- 
terest or welfare recjuire action. 

M.ATT B. Jones. 



THE AUBURNDALE VILLAGE IM- 
PROVEMENT SOCIETY 

This society was organized October 31, 
1883, with 51 members, and Hon. E. B. 
Haskell was its first president. Some of 
the more important improvements that it 
has secured are enumerated below, but 
for lack of space many matters of minor 
importance are not mentioned. 

A petition to the Boston and Albanv 
Railroad for a crossing at the head of 
Melrose Street resulted in the tunnel under 
the tracks, the society contributing three 
hundred dollars toward the expense. The 
society was also influential in bringing about 
the selection of the Rowe Street route for 
the Commonwealth Boulevard. Much at- 
tention was given to the taking of land for 
the Metropolitan Park; an architect was 
employed, and a committee of the society 
devoted much time and money to the matter. 

The sum of eight hundred dollars was 



VILLAGE IMPROVEMEiNT SOCIETIES 



99 



raised to provide for a reading-room and 
branch of the pubhc hbrary, and a thou- 
sand dollars toward fitting up the hall in 
the Ash Street schoolhouse for the society's 
use. A flag was furnished for the Williams 
School, bulletin boards have been put up 
in convenient places about the village, 
trees have been protected with wire guards, 
and waste barrels have been distributed for 
deposit of rubbish that had before been 
thrown into the streets or on the sidewalks. 
Through the aldermen from this ward the 
society aided in securing the adoption of 
an ordinance that imposes a fine for throw- 
ing rubbish of various kinds into the street. 

Feeling that Newton ought to be repre- 
sented on the Metropolitan Park Commis- 
sion, the society presented the name of 
Hon. E. B. Haskell to Governor Green- 
halge, and his appointment was secured. 

As a result of the efforts of the society in 
another direction, series of enjoyable en- 
tertainments have been given during the 
past four vears. 

C. S. Ober. 



increase to an amount sufficient to purchase 
a park or a playground. This fund was 
created largely from the proceeds of several 
interesting and attractive entertainments 
given by the association, the most notable 
and elaborate being the Pageant of the 
Year given February 21, 1899, in which 
over two hundred and twenty-five Newton 
Highlands people participated. 

Any adult resident of Newton Highlands 
is eligible to membership, the only quali- 
fication being the payment of the annual 
membership dues — one dollar per year. 
The association has been fortunate during 
its existence in having the co-operation 
and support of many of the leading Newton 
Highlands people, and through its efforts 
thou-sands of dollars have been expended 
in work which otherwise would probably 
have been left undone. 

A. H. Elder. 



THE NEWTON HIGHLANDS IM- 
PROVEMENT ASSOCIATION 

This association was organized Apirl 
12, 1886, with Moses G. Crane as its first 
president. It has always been active in 
local affairs, and has been an important and 
influential factor in nearly all matters per- 
taining to the improvement and welfare of 
the community. Under its auspices more 
than one thousand shade trees have been 
set out along the highways in Newton 
Highlands. It established the fountain at 
the junction of Forest and Walnut Streets, 
and through its efforts the westerly shore 
of Crystal Lake was beautified, and the 
adjacent land was made attractive and se- 
cured for public use, and placed under the 
control of the municipal authorities. 

The subjects of free mail delivery, ade- 
quate public school accommodations, the 
abolition of grade crossings, and proper 
electric and steam railway service and 
facilities have engaged the attention and 
activities of the association at various times. 
In connection with the results obtained, the 
influence and value of such an organization 
to the residents of Newton Highlands is 
unquestioned. 

The association has a park fund of almost 
fourteen hundred dollars which it hopes to 



THE WABAN IMPROVEMENT SO- 
CIETY 

.An\- account of the Waban Improvement 
Society would very nearly cover the whole 
history of the place, inasmuch as the society 
was drganized in April, 1889, soon after 
this village was created as "one of the 
Newtons," and it has been a potent factor 
in the development of the place. Previous 
to the building of the circuit road twenty 
vears ago, this section was a series of farms 
bordering on Beacon, Chestnut and Wood- 
ward Streets, and the Waban Improvement 
Society figures as the principal factor in 
the transformation of these old-time farms 
into a village for residential purposes, since 
practically all of the improvements and 
conveniences which the city could furnish 
were obtained through the influence and 
the efforts of the society. In the early 
days the society not only took the place of 
the old-fashioned town-meeting, where all 
matters of public interest were discussed 
and acted upon, but also inaugurated en- 
tertainments and social aft'airs in which all 
of the residents were expected to take part. 

The beginning of the public schools in 
Waban dates back to the time when the 
Improvement Society, through subscrip- 
tions and with the co-operation of the school 
committee, provided a few portable seats 
for the village hall. 

The establishment of a post-office in the 
village was obtained through the influence 



100 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON 



of the society, it being at first a branch of 
the Newton Highlands office, and changing 
through the various stages to the free de- 
livery system which the people enjoy at the 
present time. 

Religious services in the village were first 
held under the auspices of the society, ser- 
vices which later led to the Waban Christian 
Union. 

After several years of well-directed and 
fruitful efforts on the part of the Improve- 
ment Society, devoted to tree planting, 
building of sidewalks, eliminating or im- 
proving objectionable and unsightly features 
in the landscape, and other matters affecting 
the people as a whole, it seemed as though 
the society had accomplished all that could 
be reasonably expected of it, and it ap- 
peared that its usefulness was drawing to 
a close. For three or four years it lay 
dormant, so to speak, taking little part in 
the affairs of the village, but the constantly 
increasing numbers of new residents in- 
stilled new life into the community, re- 
sulting in the revival of the society into a 
live and effective organization; and it is 
through its efforts that a great many im- 
provements have been secured during the 
past year. 

An interest in public matters has been 
aroused which will be of great assistance 
to the officers of the society in pressing the 
plans for future improvements which they 
now have under consideration. 

Lewis H. Bacon. 



THE VILLAGE IMPROVEMENT 

SOCIETY OF NEWTON 

UPPER FALLS 

This society was organized October 31, 
1901, and among its activities have been 
two lawn parties and one entertainment, 
from the proceeds of which it has for three 
years given prizes for the best kept lawns, 
and for those yards and places showing 
the most care and improvement. 

The society has also placed bulletin 
boards about the village, secured a Jjath 
house, located some new sign boards, and 
called the attention of the city to some 
dangerous gutters and culverts. 

The use of the hall in the Wade School 
has recently been obtained, for entertain- 
ments, and the society at an expense of 
about two hundred and fifty dollars has 
put into the hall a stage with curtain, 



scenery, new lights, etc., and seats for the 
accommodation of nearly four hundred 
people. 

A playground, possibly in connection 
with Newton Highlands, is one of the pro- 
jected plans of the society. 

From time to time, matters needing 
correction have been called to the attention 
of the street railway and city officials, 
and usually have been remedied. 

I. W. Sweet.' 



THE NEWTONVILLE IMPROVE- 
MENT ASSOCIATION 

This association, now four years old, 
may be fairly said to Hve up to its motto, — 
"the improvement and betterment of 
everything tending to make Newtonville 
more attractive as a residential section." 
It is doing this, not by fussy agitation, but 
by a dignified interest in all that legitimately 
concerns the community. Realizing that 
Newton is the "Garden City," it has de- 
veloped a line of activity tending to make 
it more so. This activity starts with the 
householder, who is stimulated to keep 
his own premises improved, and to do it 
continuously. The spasmodic enthusiast 
for village improvement generally turns out 
to be something like the one so aptly 
pictured in the following take-off: — 

"He called for a city beautiful; 

He shouted it day by day; 
He wanted a city where noise was not, 

Where the spirit of art should sway; 
He wanted a city that should be fair, 

Where filth might never be seen, 
And forgot, in spite of the zeal he had, 

To keep his back yard clean." 

The Newtonville Improvement Association 
believes in getting after the back yard as 
well as the front yard. But more than all, 
it believes in making improvements in a 
broad way — in a way in which the public 
good comes first. Its best work has been 
in harmony with this idea, as a few in- 
stances will show. First, it co-operated 
with the Newtonville citizens in presenting 
t<i the city, for park purposes, the triangular 
lot bounded by Walnut and Watertown 
Streets and Lowell Avenue. This lot was 
occupied by a block of unsightly tene- 
ment houses — objectionable from almost 
any point of view and damaging to all the 
surrounding territory. It has now been 
transformed into a beautiful park, whose 



VILLAGE IMrROVEMENT SOCIETIES 



101 



open area, with its trees and shrubs, well 
justifies the association in undertaking 
to solve the financial problem of providing 
some $13,000 for this purpose. 

Another work of the association was 
completing the library fund, begun some 
years ago, so that Newtonville now has a 
free reading-room and branch of the public 
library. Its latest undertaking is to in- 
terest Newtonville in the far-reaching work 
of acquiring the Governor Claflin Home- 
stead for public uses, and making it, in a 
very true sense, the civic centre of the city 
of Newton. The association has been 
made the channel for carrying on this work 
in Ward 2. In this work it is co-operating 
with the best citizenship of our village and 
city. John R. Prescott. 

THE NONANTUM IMPROVE- 
IMENT ASS.OCL\TION 

The Nonantum Improvement Associa- 
tion is the successor of the Nonantum 
Improvement League, the earliest record 
of which is dated January 9, 1896. The 
league at this time was interested in the 
proposed route of the Newton & Boston 
Street Railway from Newton to Waltham 
via Nonantum, and the route as proposed 
by this league was finally accepted. 
Through the league the attention of the 
city government was called to the various 
improvements needed in the district, such 
as naming streets, numbering houses, the 
drainage of Silver Lake, enforcement of 
the building laws, the provision for a public 
playground, raising the pay of city em- 
ployees, the building of street crossings, 
and the right of aliens to peddle in this 
district. The league also interested itself 
in the petition of the Newtonville and 
Watertown Street Railway Company, pray- 
ing the legislature to grant the privilege 
of e.xtending its line to Union Square, 
Allston. This extension was afterwards 
accomplished. 

The last record of the league is May 4, 



1897. It was in October, 1905, that the 
citizens of Nonantum again interested 
themselves in "the improving of the dis- 
trict and developing such other objects as 
are carried out by a civic league." Its 
first real work was accomplished when the 
association drew the attention of the city 
government to the deplorable condition 
of the streets, by a very strong petition 
signed by property owners and tax-payers 
in the village. This petition was urged in 
person by the members and bore fruit. 

The next task of the association was the 
locating of the new schoolhouse to be built 
in this district. It was finally decided that 
the purchase of a lot on the north side of 
Watertown Street be recommended to the 
public building committee. After valua- 
tion of property of this district was learned, 
and a conference was held with the school- 
house committee, the city purchased a site 
that takes in part of the old Steams 
estate. 

At this time the location of a branch 
reading room of the Public Library was 
strongly urged, and the association went 
about it with great vigor. By June 26, 
1906, $812.55 had been subscribed, and the 
reading-room was established and opened 
shortly after to the public. 

The paper depository on the east side of 
Allison Park was ne.xt reported upon to 
the association as being a common nuisance, 
and endangering property when garbage 
was burned. A h3'drant constituting an 
obstruction on Adams Street was referred 
to the Highway Commission, as was also 
a defective culvert on Adams Street; both 
matters were seen to and remedied. 

The feasibility of securing a foot bridge 
across the Charles River at the foot of 
Faxon Street was brought before the asso- 
ciation, but after inquiry from the authori- 
ties, it was thought advisable to let the 
matter rest until 1908, when the Metro- 
politan Park Commission would be in a 
better financial condition to lend aid to the 
project. jAin:s A. O'Donnell. 



FREEMASONRY IN NEWTON 



BY LEWIS E. BINNEY 



THE institution of Freemasonry, an- 
cient in its history and honorable in 
its reputation, and in its venerable 
character moral and benevolent, appeals to 
the thinking mind and attracts to itself men 
in every station of life, from the nation's 
honored President to its humblest citizen. 
It is an order whose only creed is, "The 
Fatherhood of God and the Brotherhood 
of man." Founded on liberality, brotherly 
love, and charity, with a beautiful system 




of miirality illustrited and nuulcated by 
symbols, it has stood the test of ages and 
is to-day pre-eminent among secret so- 
cieties. It is in no wise a rival of the 
church, nor a substitute for religion, but 
inculcates a religious morality, a belief in 
God, and a reverence for his Holy name. 
Its secret work possesses a fascination 
which holds its members with a charm 
that is rarely broken. 

The demolition of Tremont Hall a few 
years ago, made necessary by the work of 
depressing the railroad tracks through 
Newtonville, removed a landmark of special 
interest to the Freemasons of Newton. 
This building, which stood on the west 
side of Newtonville Square, was used by 
them on special occasions up to the year 
1875, their apartments till then being in- 
adequate for large gatherings. It was here 
that the first meeting of the fraternity was 
held on June 25, i860, presided over by 
Worshipful Brother William D. Coolidge, 
then Junior Grand Warden of the Grand 
Lodge of Massachusetts; Brother Adin 
B. Underwood acting as secretary. 

On August 3d of the same year a dispen- 



sation was granted by the Grand Lodge 
of Masons of Massachusetts, of which 
Winslow Lewis, M.D., was Most Wor- 
shipful Grand Master, to Worshipful 
Brother Coolidge and thirty-five others to 
form a Masonic lodge in the town of New- 
ton, and the first meeting under this dis- 
pensation was held in a room over Tremont 
Hall, September 26, i860, twenty-three 
brothers being present. Among the gifts 
presented to the lodge at that meeting 
was a set of collars from Winslow Lewis 
Lodge of Boston, with the good wishes of 
that lodge for the success and happiness 
of the new lodge. 

The name "Dalhousie" was proposed 
by Brother Underwood and adopted by 
the lodge. The following extract is from 
the Freemason's Monlhly Magazine of 
October, i860: "In the selection of a 
name the brethren have sought to honor 
the memory of the Grand Master of Scot- 
land whose term of office continued from 
1767 to 1769, and who on the 30th of May, 
1769, granted letters of deputation to General 
Joseph Warren by which he became Grand 
Master of Masons in Boston, New England, 
and within one hundred miles of the same. 

"George, the eighth Earl of Dalhousie, 
the Grand Master above referred to, was 
a descendant of the illustrious family of 
Ramsays which came from Germany and 
settled in Scotland as early as the reign 
of David I." The name is eminent in 
letters, in statesmanship, and in war. The 
Dalhousie arms were adopted by the kidge 
as a seal. 

The first organization consisted of Will- 
iam D. Coolidge, Worshipful Master; 
Albert A. Kendall, Senior Warden; and 
S. H. Munson. Junior Warden; but in 
January, 1861, Worshipful Brother Coolidge 
having been elected Grand Master of the 
Grand Lodge, Worshipful Brother Peter 
C. Jones was appointed Master for the 
remainder of the year. 

The succeeding meetings of the lodge 
were held in the Swedenborgian Chapel, 
a small hall in the second story of a build- 
ing erected by the late Dustin Lancey near 
the site of the present railroad station on 



FREEMASONRY IN NEWTON 



103 



Bowers Street. This building, which was 
destroyed by tire a few years later, was two 
stories in height, the lower of which was 
used for the storage of lumber and the 
upper story, entered by a flight of stairs on 
the outside of the structure, as a place of 
worship by the Swedenborgian Society 
on Sundays and as a school-room on week 
days. 

Early in the year 1861 the Methodist 
Society of the village having erected a 
church building at the corner of Washing- 
ton and Court Streets (the latter now 
Central Avenue), the lodge leased for ten 
years the upper floor for a lodge-room and 
met there for the first time February 20, 
1861. This room, the first to be called a 
Masonic Hall, was plainly furnished with 
a woollen carpet and common settees, hav- 
ing a large stove in one corner which made 
its vicinity uncomfortably hot, while the 
opposite end of the room was equally un- 
comfortably cold; there were no facilities 
for banquets or social occasions, and its 
proximity to the roof made the heat in- 
tolerable in the warm months. 

In 1874 the late ex-Governor William 
Claflin built what is known as Central 
Block, completing the upper portion of the 
structure for the accommodation of the 
Masons, who had outgrown their quarters 
in the church building. The apartments 
consisted of a large hall which was hand- 
somely furnished, a smaller hall, armory, 
banquet hall, several anterooms, etc., and 
seemed adequate to the requirements of 
the fraternity for many 3'ears; but in 1895 
the need of still more commodious apart- 
ments became apparent, and after several 
failures to obtain satisfactorj- accommo- 
dations the fraternity decided to build 
their present temple. This building, spa- 
cious, convenient, handsome in all its ap- 
pointments, richly furnished, and finished 
in perfect taste, is an ornament to the city 
and the equal of any ^Masonic Temple in 
New England, and is the pride of the 
fraternity of Newton. 

Dalhousie Lodge F. & A. M. was con- 
stituted June 24, 1 86 1, with a charter 
membership of 27; it has to-day a mem- 
bership of about 550, with a constantly in- 
creasing number of applicants, and will 
celebrate its fiftieth anniversary in 1910. 
The lodge participated in the Masonic 
parade in Boston, March 5, 1865, on the 
occasion of laving the corner-stone of the 



Masonic Temple, and again, June 24, 1867, 
when the Temple was dedicated. The 
President of the United States presided and 
assisted at the ceremony, and about 12,000 
Masons were in line. Notable among the 
brethren of this lodge were Brothers Jesse 
Winslow and Timothy Butterfield, the 
former made a Mason in 1823, the latter 
in 1824, both of whom appeared as Masons 
at the laying of the corner-stone of Bunker 
Hill monument, June 17, 1825, at which 
ceremony General Lafayette assisted. An 
incident of interest in connection with the 
presence of this distinguished brother on 




MASOXIC HALL, NEWTONVILLE 

that occasion was his visit to Newtonville 
as the guest of General W'illiam Hull at the 
Old Elms. 

The lodge also paraded in Newtonville 
with the other IMasonic bodies of this 
vicinity at the ceremony of laying the corner- 
stone of their temple. 

In 1861, when this lodge was chartered, 
the stirring events incident to the Civil 
War were occurring, and many of the 
brethren served their country in that 
memorable struggle. Its first Worshipful 
Master, Albert A. Kendall, M.D., while in 
that office enlisted as surgeon in the 12th 
Regiment of Massachusetts Volunteers and 
was killed at the battle of Sharpsburg, 
September 17, 1862; his remains were 
brought home by Grand Master Coolidge 
and buried with IMasonic honors by the 
lodge. 

General Adin B. Underwood, that gal- 
lant Newton soldier who so nearly gave his 
life at the battle of Lookout Mountain, 
was an ardent Mason and a chapter mem- 
ber of the lodge, chapter, and commandery. 

In 1869 Newton Chapter of Royal 
Arch Masons was instituted, with Com- 
panion A. B. L^ndenvood as its first High 



104 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON 



Priest, and from a charter memljership of 
39 the organization has now about 325 
members. 

Gethsemane Commandery, Knights 
Templars, was constituted in 1872 with a 
charter membership of 31 and official rank 
of No. 35 in the Grand Commandery of 
Massachusetts and Rhode Island; it has 
now a membership of over 400 Sir Knights 
with the numerical standing of No. 11 
among the forty-six commanderies of the 
jurisdiction. Its military and dignified 
appearance in the notable Templar parades 
in Boston in 1895 and 1905 won for it a 
creditable distinction among the com- 
manderies of the State. Its Sir Knights 
have acted as hosts on several occasions in 
entertaining visiting commanderies and 
have enjoyed many pleasant pilgrimages, 
especially that to Bangor and Mt. Kineo in 
1905. Arrangements have been perfected 
for an excursion to Saragota in July, on the 
occasion of the thirtieth triennial conclave 
of the Grand Encampment of the United 
States. 



Freemasonry has found in the city of 
Newton a residential community favorable 
for its growth, and numbers among its 
craftsmen officers in the civil government, 
members of the judiciary and clergy, and 
all classes of professional and business men. 
It is a social order, and supplies a want 
in the life of the busy man of to-day, by 
offering a place where he can mingle with 
kindred spirits and exchange thoughts and 
ideas. 

The fact that so many men of marked 
ability and culture are zealous Freemasons 
is proof that there is much pertaining to 
the fraternity which is worthy of the best 
intellects, and despite the assaults of the 
intolerant Freemasonry is destined to 
reign. The prophetic words of its immortal 
bard are ever re-echoed by all true brothers 
of the Mvstic-tie: — 



"Then let us pray, that come i 
As come it will, for a' that - 



That man to man, the world o'er, 
Shall brothers be, for a' that." 



ODD FELLOWSHIP IN NEWTON 



BY HARVEY C. WOOD 



ODD FELLOWSHIP, as all prob- 
ably well know, was founded to carry 
out in the daily intercourse of its 
members the fundamental principles of 
the order, — friendship, love, and truth, — 
which make the rich to help the poor, the 
well to nurse the sick, the learned to 
instruct the unlearned, and make all men 
seek to imitate the goodness of the Father 
of all men, and in so doing recognize the 
Fatherhood of God and the Brotherhood of 
Man. 

American Odd Fellowship had its birth 
in the city of Baltimore on April 26, 1819, 
when Washington Lodge, No. i, was 
instituted by five brothers who had been 
members of the English order of Odd 
Fellows, and had come to make a home 
in this country. It was instituted in a 
tavern called the Seven Stars, — a building 
which was destroyed in the fire in Balti- 
more about two years ago. 

The first lodge instituted in Newton was 
Elliot Lodge, No. 58, which was instituted 
at Newton Upper Falls on January 30, 



1845, and continued its existence until 
May 30, 1851, when the charter was sur- 
rendered. When it was reinstated, Feb- 
ruary 25, 1870, it was located in Need- 
ham, and it remains there at the present 
time. 

About the time Elliot Lodge surrendered 
its charter, owing to the strong prejudice 
in the public mind against all secret so- 
cieties, many lodges surrendered their 
charters, some of them being reinstituted 
later. For fifteen years no new charters 
were granted, but from 1866 the growth 
of the order has been rapid and permanent 
until the present time, when there is a 
membership of over 55,000 in the state of 
Massachusetts, and over a million and a 
quarter in the country at large. 

The next lodge organized in Newton 
was Waban Loclge, No. 156, which was 
instituted in the village of Newton, April 
19, 1871, and later, being obliged to pro- 
cure another hall, removed to Newtonville, 
December i, 1901. Home Lodge, No. 162, 
was instituted at Newton Upper Falls, 



ODD FELLOWSHIP IN NEWTON 



105 



April 3, 1873, and removed to Newton 
Highlands in October, 1887. Newton 
Lodge, No. 92, was instituted at West 
Newton, June 15, 1887. The subordinate 
lodges in the city of Newton as they stand 
at the present time are Waban Lodge, No. 
156, Newtonville; Home Lodge, No. 162, 
Newton Highlands; Newton Lodge, No. 
92, West Newton; with a total member- 
ship of over 500. 

A brief account of the most trying time 
Odd Fellowship has ever experienced 
will be of interest. When the Grand Lodge 
met in Baltimore in 1861, war had been 
declared. Sumter had been fired on, the 
battle of Bull Run had been fought, and 
brothers of the South had taken up arms 
against brothers of the North. When the 
roll was called, the seats of all the repre- 
sentatives from south of Mason and Dixon's 
line were vacant, and though previous to the 
session an attempt had been made to form 
a Grand Lodge of the Confederate states, 
it had been frustrated. One fact must 
not be passed by, — this was the last session 
at which Thomas Wildey, the founder of 
the order, and its first Grand Sire, was 
present. He died on the 19th of October. 
The sessions of 1862 and 1863, held in 
Baltimore, were repetitions of the session 
of 1861. War was still raging, and the 
representatives of the South were still 
absent. The session of 1864 was held in 
the city of Boston. Il was felt that the 
war was drawing to an end. The South 
was growing weaker and less able to carry 
on the struggle. In 1865 the session was 
held in Baltimore, every state being repre- 
sented except Florida and North Carohna. 
The brothers, of the North showed their 
brotherly feeling toward the brothers of the 
South, many of whom had lost all that they 
possessed, by remitting the tax of all the 
Southern jurisdictions to the Grand Lodge 
for the years 1 861-1864, and all was har- 
mony and peace again. 

After the organization of the subordinate 
lodge, in response to a demand for a higher 
branch of the order the encampment branch 



was organized. The first encampment 
was instituted in Baltimore July 6, 1827. 
The first encampment in Newton was 
Newton Encampment, No. 50, instituted 
in the village of Newton, March 29, 1875; 
in 1S82 the members voted to surrender 
their charter, when the brothers from 
Waltham took hold of it and on August 
27th moved it to Waltham; later the name 
was changed to Waltham Encampment. 
Garden City Encampment, No. 62, was 
instituted in the village of Newton, May 
16, 1887, and being obliged in 1890 to 
procure another hall, moved to Newton 
Highlands January i, 1891. They were 
burned out February 5, 1903, and then 
moved to Newtonville; but in 1895 the 
building was taken away to widen Washing- 
ton Street, and they returned to Newton 
Highlands, November i. 

Early recognizing woman's worth in 
carrying out the principles of the order, 
and her endowment by nature with the 
tenderness and sympathy which especially 
qualified her for nursing the sick, some 
members of the order desired to establish 
a degree for the wives of Odd Fellows, so 
that they might be cared for in sickness, 
as their husbands were. At first this met 
with great opposition, and it was not until 
1851 that a degree for women was estab- 
lished, called the degree of Rebekah. It 
was an honorary degree, and in 1868 its 
members were allowed to establish lodges 
of their own. There are two Rebekah 
lodges in Newton, — Highland Rebekah 
Lodge, No. 82, instituted at Newton High- 
lands October 15, 1889, and Tennyson 
Rebekah Lodge, No. 119, instituted at 
West Newton November :i, 1892. 

The Odd Fellows of Newton are doing 
a noble work, walking hand in hand with 
the Christian Church in visiting the sick, 
relieving the distressed, burying the dead, 
and educating the orphan; and either of 
the lodges in Newton will welcome to its 
membership any man, of good health and 
good character, who desires to help his 
brother man. 



THE GRAND ARMY OF THE REPUBLIC 
IN NEWTON 

BY GEORGE M. FISKE 






THE BOVS OF 



THE Newton Post of the Grand Army 
was organized in July, 1868, with the 
following charter members: Wm. B. 
Fowle, A. B. Underwood, Thomas P. 
Haviland, J. Gushing Edmands, Allston W. 
Whitney, Fred. S. Benson, Geo. S. Boyd, 
Hosea Hyde, I. F. Kingsbury, and Albert 
Plummer. In the selection of a name the 
choice fell upon that of Charles Ward, 
one of Newton's volunteers. This choice 
was a most worthy one, for Charles Ward 
was a typical volunteer soldier. At a war 
meeting held at Newton Centre July 23, 
1862, he volunteered, urging others to 
do the same. "I rejoice," he said, "that 
I am permitted to go. What life is too 
dear to be sacrificed for one's country? 
Not mine. I have come here to enlist. 
I want to fight for my country, and I 
hope I am ready to die for her if need be. 
I say, Comel We will stand by the flag 
till we conquer or die." Within a year of 
his enlistment, he fell upon the field of 
Gettysburg. 

In the order at large, the Newton Post 
in character and ability ranks among the 
foremost. Two of its members have held 
the office of Commander of the Depart- 
ment of Massachusetts, — Gen. A. B. 



Underwood in 1872, and Wilfred A. 
Wetherbee in 1894; the latter also hold- 
ing the office of Inspector-General of the 
National Organization in 1902, and at 
present that of Assistant Adjutant-General 
of the Department. 

The headquarters of the Post at the 
Masonic Building, Newtonville, are most 
attractive, consisting of a smoking-room, 
relic-room, and Post-room. More than 
150 pictures and portraits adorn the walls, 
illustrating vividly the various battles of 
the war on land and sea. There are also 
photographs of noted generals and others. 
A collection of war relics gathered from 
Southern battlefields occupies the octag- 
onal relic-room, leading to the Post Hall, 
and is of intense interest. All persons are 
cordially invited to inspect these reminders 
of the struggle for our national existence. 

The objects of the Grand Army are 
mainly charitable, the observance of Me- 
morial Day, and the inculcating of patriot- 
ism and loyalty to the great principles 
represented bv the Union cause in the 
Civil War. 

]Ministering to the wants of needy com- 
rades, or of those whom they ha\-e left 
unprovided for, is the greatest privilege 



THE GRAND ARMY OF THE REPUBLIC IN NEWTON 



107 



and pleasure of the members of the Grand 
Army. Since its organization Charles 
Ward Post has spent over eleven thousand 
dollars in this way. At every meeting care- 
ful inquiry is made of those present as to 
any who need assistance. The great ma- 
jority of those who volunteered were men 
of moderate means, or young men who, 
like Charles Ward, gave up all their busi- 
ness opportunities to enter the army, 
returning — very many of those who were 
so fortunate as to return at all — broken 
down in health, crippled for life, and the 
whole current of their lives turned into 
unsuccessful channels. Many of the mem- 
bers of the Newton Post are of this class, 
men who have shed their blood for their 
country, and carry upon their bodies to- 
day the marks of the enemy's bullets and 
bayonets. They are of those who at their 
country's call 

"Dropped their mallets on the bench. 

Forsook their ploughs on hill and plain, 
And tore themselves with piteous wrench 

Of heart and hope, from love and gain, 
And trooped in throngs to tent and trench." 

There are many who have been able to 
maintain themselves and families in com- 
fort in the past, but who now, as old age 
comes on, find it impossible to do so. 

Three fairs or carnivals have been held 
under the auspices of the Post, bringing 
some $14,000 into its treasury. In these 
carnivals the Post has been greatly favored 
by the most cordial support of the people, 
especially of the ladies. The relief fund 
of the Post on January i, 1907, stood at a 
little over $7000. The membership of 
the Post has at times reached nearly 
200, but is now less than 150. It probably 
includes, however, nearly all the veterans 
of the war residing in Newton, as very few 
are willing longer to remain outside the 
ranks of the order. 

The Grand Army badge, illustrated in 
this article, is a decoration which any man 
may be proud to wear, one that will be 
prized by future generations to a degree 
probably little comprehended to-day. 

Charles Ward Post has from time to time 
entertained many notable guests. Some 
twelve years ago the Confederate General 
Simon Buckner, the great friend of Gen- 
eral Grant, was entertained by the Post 
at City Hall, and later Confederate, after- 
ward Union General AVheeler received like 
courtesies. Some criticised this honoring of 



"rebels," as they were called, — but the 
veterans of the Civil War have ever been 
the first to extend cordial greetings to those 
who were arrayed in arms against them. 
They accept the sentiment expressed by 
Dr. Holland, at least as regards the great 
majority of those who fought upon both 
sides: — 

"Each did the duty that he saw, 

Both wrought at God's supreme designs, 
And under love's eternal law, 

Each hfe with equal beauty shines." 

General Sherman, General Russel A. Alger, 
General Miles, and others high in honor 
have also been guests of the Post. 

There are two organizations auxiliary to 
the Post, the J. Wiley Edmunds Camp of 
the Sons of \'eterans, and the Mrs. A. E. 




Cunningham Tent of the Daughters of Vet- 
erans. The high standing of these organi- 
zations is well illustrated by the fact that the 
Division Commander of the Sons of Veter- 
ans is James K. Wentworth of the Newton 
Camp, and the President of the Massa- 
chusetts Department of the Daughters of 
Veterans is Miss Katherine R. A. Flood 
of the Newton Tent. The Post has an- 
other auxiliary, the Associate Members. 
The object of this contingent is to give 
the citizens of Newton an opportunity 
of showing their interest in the Grand Army, 
and of receiving the special courtesies of 
the Post. The membership now includes 
75 of Newton's most prominent and pa- 
triotic men. The Camp Fires of the New- 
ton Post are famous for their interest, 
brilliancy, and wit, and are greatly enjoyed 



108 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON 



and largely attended by friends from far 
and near. The observance of Memorial 
Day under the auspices of the Post, joined 
by the Spanish War Veterans of Newton, 
the Claiiin Guard, the City Government, 
associate members, and citizens, has ever 
been a most notable occasion in Newton. 
The soldiers' burial lot at the cemetery was 
established and is maintained by the Post. 
In this lot are buried manv veterans who 



otherwise would have been left to sleep in 
nameless graves. 

A few years more, however, — very few 
now, — and the Grand Army of the Re- 
public will be only a name. No successors 
will fill the ranks. The Great Commander 
above is giving the order "Fall in, fall in," 
and this one and that one hears the voice, 
obeys the call, and the great column 
moves on until all shall be gone. 



THE NEWTON YOUNG MEN'S CHRISTIAN 
ASSOCIATION 

BY HARRY WHITNEY BASCOM 



THIS Association was organized Oc- 
tober i6, 1877, in Eliot Lower 
Hall. Space will not permit the 
mention of the men who have served 
as officers and directors during the 
thirty vears of its existence, nor of the 
men and women who have given liberally 
of time and money to build up the institu- 
tion. The Association to-day includes 
among its membership and subscribers 214 
boys, 180 young men, and 100 men who give 
toward its support, making a total of 494 
men and boys. About 80 women are mem- 
bers of the woman's auxiliary, and many 
women are among our most generous sub- 
scribers. 

The Association occupies the first and 
second floors of Eliot Block, opposite the 
railroad station. There is a large reception- 
room with office adjoining, a parlor, a 
reading-room and library, a game-room, 
a small hall, a boys' room, and a large 
gymnasium. Four years ago this space 
seemed ample for a number of years, but 
already the bo3's' room is overcrowded, 
and the supply of gymnasium lockers is 
not equal to the demand, although twenty 
large lockers and thirty-two small ones 
have been added to the equipment during 
the past two years. 

Along educational lines the Association 
maintains a reading-room, a small library, 
classes in first aid to the injured and in 
mechanical drawing, and chess and camera 
clubs. 

The physical work is carried on in a large 
gymnasium, which is occupied every after- 
noon and evening. There are three boys' 
classes: one for l)oys of 10 to 12, another 
for bovs of 12 to 14, and still another for 



boys of 14 to 18. A large number of high 
school boys are in this last class. On 
Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday even- 
ings of each week there are classes for young 
men. On Wednesday and Saturday after- 
noons at 5 P.M. are conducted classes for 
business and professional men. 

The Watertown High School basket ball 
teams use the gymnasium for practice and 
regular games. Other school teams play 
there from time to time. The Association 
has representative teams of base ball, senior 
and junior; basket ball, senior and junior; 
and athletic teams which have been very 
successful. It also gives an annual exhibi- 
tion of the boys' gymnasium class work, 
holds athletic meets, and for two years 
has conducted an athletic meet between 
the Sunday Schools of Newton. 

Socials and entertainments are held from 
time to time for the boys and young men, 
and a truly social and fraternal spirit is 
shown to any boy or man who comes into 
the building. 

The .■\ssociation stands for a well-rounded 
and complete man; and man without the 
religion of Jesus Christ in his heart is not a 
whole man. For religious instruction and 
help in practical Christian living, two 
meetings are held for men on !Monda}- even- 
ing and two for boys on Sunday after- 
noon; six Bible classes for boys are held 
on Sunday afternoon, and workers' classes 
for men and boys are also conducted. 
Many of our members are taking advan- 
tage of these opportunities to develop them- 
selves along religious lines, and to build a 
complete man with a strong body, a well- 
educated mind, and a pure social and reli- 
gious spirit. 



DAUGHTERS OF THE REVOLUTION 

BY MRS. ALEXANDER M. FERRIS. 



THE society "Daughters of the 
Revolution" was organized in i8gi, 
and incorporated in 1892 under the 
laws of the State of New York. The 
local chapter of this society was organized 
October 3, 1896, when 
about twenty-five women 
assembled in the tea-room 
of the Newton Club. Miss 
Sarah E. Hunt, at that 
time State Regent of Mas- 
sachusetts, and other offi- 
cers and members of the 
State Council were present, 
iliss Hunt presided, and 
appointed the following 
officers: Regent, Mrs. Alex- 
ander M. Ferris; Secretary, 
Miss Susan A. UTiiting; 
Treasurer, Mrs. William 
T. Logan. 

The first business meet- 
ing of the chapter was 
held at the residence of 
the regent December 2, 
1896. Constitution and 
By-laws were adopted, and 
the name Sarah Hull pro- 
posed and accepted, — in 
honor of a native of New- 
ton of high character and 
descent, prominent in posi- 
tion and in Revolutionary 
society as daughter of 
Judge Fuller and wife of 
General William Hull. 

During the year after 
its organization the chap- 
ter made a surprising 
growth in numbers and 
in interest. Before the 
charter was given the 
number had increased to forty-two, and 
at the first annual meeting the member- 
ship numbered ninety-one. There are 
now one hundred and forty members, 
with a waiting hst, making it the largest 
chapter in the General Society. Meetings 
are held from October to June. 

During the Spanish American War 



the Sarah Hull Chapter contributed over 
fifteen hundred articles, through the Mas- 
sachusetts Aid Association, for our , sol- 
diers in the Phihppines. . I' 
Our next good work was along educa- 




SARAH HULL 

tional lines, when three scholarships were 
established at Berea College; these have 
been continued yearly, and scholarships 
have also been established at Lincoln 
University. To the schools of Newton 
has been given a travelling library con- 
sisting of fifty volumes of Revolutionary 
history, carefully selected; also two fine 



110 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON 



engravings of General and Martha Wash- 
ington were presented to the high school. 

The greatest work, however, was the 
generous contribution from the members 
and their friends toward the General So- 
ciety's patriotic work at Valley Forge, 
where a monument was erected and dedi- 
cated on Yorktown Day, October 19, 1901. 
This monument is an obelisk of Barre 
granite adorned with bronze panels, and 
is placed a few feet from the only marked 
grave in Valley Forge, that of Lieutenant 
John Waterman of Rhode Island. The 
inscription reads: "To the memory of 
the Soldiers of Washington's Army who 
sleep in Valley Forge. 1 777-1 778." This 
chapter contributed the largest amount 



of any chapter in the country for this 
work, which proved so successful. 

Contributions have also been given 
toward the bronze tablet placed in the 
Boston Public Library in memory of the 
pre-eminent writers of American patri- 
otic verse and song. Barrels of books 
and clothing have been sent each year to 
Berea College and Lincoln University. 
This chapter also assisted generously 
toward the fund for the erection of the 
Washington Arch at Cambridge, October 
19, 1906. 

There has also been organized a local 
branch of the Junior Sons and Daughters 
of the Revolution, named the Caleb Stark 
Chapter. 



DAUGHTERS OF THE AMERICAN 
REVOLUTION 



BY FANNY B. ALLEN 



IN December, 1896, a number of women 
of Newton met for the purpose of form- 
ing a chapter of the Daughters of the 
American Revolution. Miss Ellen Jack- 
son read an interesting account of her 
ancestor, Lucy Jackson, who was one of 
the many noble women of Revolutionary 
times, and who worked for her country 
as faithfully as those forty-six Jacksons 
who went from Newton to the front. 
"Lucy Jackson" was unanimously chosen 
•as the name of the chapter. 

Madame von Rydingsvard, then the 
State Regent of Massachusetts, and Miss 
Mary A. Greene, State Regent of Rhode 
Island, formally organized the chapter at 
the home of the Aliens, in West Newton, 
December 9, 1896. During the ten years 
of the chapter's life, it has striven to in- 
culcate and foster a spirit of true patri- 
otism, as set forth in the by-laws of the 
National Society D. A. R. 

The officers of the chapter at its begin- 
ning were: Regent, Miss Fanny B. All^n; 
Vice-Regent, Mrs. F. F. Raymond; Treas- 
urer, Mrs. Thomas Whidden; Secretary, 
Mrs. D. A. Sargent; Historian, ]Mrs. 
John Carter; Registrar, Mrs. Frank ^I. 
Sherman. 

Eight meetings are held 3^early, from 
October to June, usually at the home of 



some member. The entertairmient for 
the afternoon consists of a paper by a 
member of the chapter, on some histori- 
cal subject or ancestor who figured more 
or less conspicuously in the Revolution; 
varied by a paper by some regent or 
state regent, whose thoughts are largely 
given to the grand work of Patriotism. 
Many distinguished speakers have also 
addressed the chapter, — such speakers as 
Mrs. Julia Ward Howe, Mrs. jSIary A. 
Livermore, Col. Thomas Wentworth Hig- 
ginson, Dr. Edward Everett Hale, Mrs. 
Alice Freeman Palmer, and Miss Alice 
Longfellow. 

Courses of lectures have been given under 
the auspices of the chapter, by John Fiske, 
Senator George F. Hoar, Edwin D. Mead, 
Henry A. Clapp, Louis C. Elson, Rev. 
Henry Spaulding, and Prof. E. H. Griggs, 
while the chapter members have listened 
with deepest interest to such men and 
women as Col. Homer B. Spraguc, Rev. 
Julian C. Jaynes, Mr. Joseph H. Allen, 
Col. Samuel Drake, Rev. C. A. Staples, 
Prof. Homer Woodbridge, Miss Mary 
A. Greene, Miss Anna Scoville, Miss Rosa 
Allen, Mrs. E. N. L. Walton, and many 
others. A stereopticon lecture was given 
on the history of the Revolution, for the 
benefit of the children of Newton, and 



LITERARY AND SOCIAL CLUBS 



111 



Mrs. Lucia Ames Mead gave a talk on 
true patriotism, to which all teachers 
were invited. 

A most successful colonial tea and 
exhibit has been held at the home of Mrs. 
Charles S. Dennison, where over sixty 
ladies were dressed in Colonial costumes, 
and countless articles, belonging to chap- 
ter members, of rare value and beautiful 
workmanship, were exhibited, and the 
minuet was charmingly danced by younger 
members and daughters of members. 
Delightful musical evenings have been 
enjoyed, arranged by the music committee 
of the chapter, with a paper on the early 
music of our country, illustrated by quaint 
catches and rounds. In June, outings 
have been taken to the many historic spots 
in which this region abounds. 

Patriotic organizations have a great 
work to do, and we have kept constantly 
before us the high aims of the national 



society. We have sent our contributions 
to assist in preserving historic spots, among 
others the Hancock-Clarke House in Lex- 
ington, the Lowell and Walcott Memorials, 
the Paul Revere house in Boston, the 
Jefferson Memorial Association, the Po- 
hick Church, of which George Washing- 
ton was a vestryman, and others. 

The suffering of our soldiers during 
the Cuban war called forth the sympa- 
thies of our chapter, and five hundred 
dollars was contributed towards the hos- 
pital ship given by Massachusetts. We 
have also contributed largely to the Con- 
tinental Hall at Washington, which is 
to perpetuate the memory of the men 
and women who achieved American in- 
dependence. 

The present regent of the Lucy Jackson 
Chapter is Mrs. Arthur Friend, and the two 
vice-regents are Mrs. George Hutchinson 
and Mrs. .Arthur Hosmer. 



LITERARY AND SOCIAL CLUBS 



THE WEST NEWTON BOOK CLUB 

AMONG the literary clubs of Newton 
was one formed about the year 
1854, while Newton was still a town 
and West Newton a small village. My 
impression is that it grew out of a 
reading club, which used to meet at 
the house of Mr. J. H. Stephenson. 
There Buckle's "History of Civilization," a 
book on palasontolog)', and others were 
read and discussed. Later, the present 
club was formed, with the object of giving 
its members opportunity of seeing the best 
magazines of the day. These were passed 
among twelve families, each keeping a 
number of them five days, and then passing 
to the next. The period was aftenvards 
changed to one week. The gentlemen 
and their wives met once a year to decide 
what magazines should be taken, and to 
dispose by auction of the old ones. After 
some years, it was proposed to meet at the 
different houses once a month, and have a 
supper, with the discussion of some subject 
of public interest in the evening. To 
make it less burdensome to the members, 
the supper was to be very simple, limited 
to one article, such as oysters, salads, or 
cold meats, with bread or biscuits of 
various kinds, tea and coffee. The sim- 



phcity thus established in the beginning has 
been faithfully carried out, with the result 
that the monthly meetings have been held 
with scarcely a break, and are still kept up 
for nine months of the year. Postals are 
sent a few days before the meeting, and no 
reply is expected unless for some reason one 
cannot be present. In another way the 
meetings are very informal, there being no 
special organization, the only officer being a 
secretary, who reads a report of the last 
meeting, and by her spirit of fun adds 
much to the evening's entertainment. The 
gentleman at whose house the meeting is 
held presides for the evening. 

The club was at first composed of min- 
isters and prominent business men, with 
their wives, — of whom there is but one 
of the original members remaining. As 
vacancies have occurred they have been 
filled by a vote of the members, and in 
that way the numbers have remained the 
same in all these years. 

I remember well the early times when 
some question of the day was proposed for 
the members to study during the month, and 
was then ably discussed, to the edification 
of us younger members. Later, papers 
were read on political or scientific subjects, 
with discussions after them. Of late years 



112 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON 



the entertainment of the evening has been 
varied by papers on diflerent subjects, 
literary, scientific, social or educational, 
written and read by members; or some 
person outside the club has been invited 
to speak to them, thus bringing in a new 
element and adding a new interest. 

Ellen E. Pratt. 



THE EVERY SATURDAY CLUB 

A literary club organized for mutual 
improvement, and held strictly to that 
self-imposed task, for thirty-seven years, is 
something unique. At the end of this long 
period, the interest in its work is unabated, 
the attendance is regular, and a few of its 
founders are still active members. Such, 
in brief, is the history of the Every Satur- 
day Club, of Newtonville. 

In the early fall of 1870, a few friends who 
had spent together many bright hours of the 
summer just past, suggested continuing 
their social meetings through the winter, 
combining with them a course of reading 
that should be both profitable and pleasant. 
According to the records, the first meeting 
of the club was held on the evening of 
September 24, 1870, with Mr. William F. 
Whittemore. The reading for the evening 
was Dickens's "Christmas Carol." With 
this sweet message began the delightful 
work of years of genial fellowship. Never 
has one discordant note interrupted the 
harmony of this organization, and many 
lasting friendships have resulted from the 
pleasant seasons of labor together. 

On the 22nd of October, 1870, the present 
name was chosen, and a constitution 
adopted, which served its purpose three 
years, and in October, 1873, gave place to 
the present constitution. At this time it 
was found desirable to meet fortnightly 
instead of weekly, but the name of the club 
remained unchanged. 

Original work by the members was begun 
in the winter of 1872, and in 1873 was in- 
augurated the present custom of the club, 
the publishing of the program, with ap- 
pointments for the winter's work, at the 
reorganization each fall. The membership 
has always been limited to forty, and each 
member is bound by the constitution to 
accept the appointment of the all-powerful 
executive committee. 

The first President, Mr. Henry C. Hay- 
den, served the club most efficientlv. 



^Ir. Oilman H. Tucker, our second 
President, was the originator of the admi- 
rable methods of study and discussion 
adopted by the club, to which so much of 
its success is due. The earlier years of 
the club were devoted to English literature, 
especially the study of Shakespeare; but 
since then a wide range of study has been 
covered. It has aimed to foster an apprecia- 
tive and discriminating love for pure litera- 
ture; to give to all within its influence a 
hint, at least, of the secret of self-culture; 
and above all to encourage habits of study 
and cultivate power of expression; and at 
the same time, a comprehensive and in- 
telligent glance along the whole line of 
English literature has been secured. 

The social entertainments of the club, 
though never interfering with its legitimate 
work, are no unimportant feature of its 
history. The first large reunion was held 
March 5, 1878, in the spacious parlor of the 
old General Hull mansion, and was pre- 
sided over by a most gracious and hospitable 
host and hostess, IMr. and Mrs. John L. 
Roberts. The records of that time men- 
tion twenty-five meetings with these genial 
patrons of the club, and so long as life and 
health permitted, a hearty welcome was 
assured. 

Among the members have been clergy- 
men, teachers, school superintendents, 
lawyers, state officials, physicians, business 
men, and many cultivated women; and 
through nearly twoscore years has been 
felt most deeply by all, past and present 
members alike, a sincere and hearty fel- 
lowship in the membership of the Every 
Saturday Club. Jull\ A. Willfa". 



THE TUESDAY CLUB 

of Newton was organized on November i, 
1877, "for literary and social purposes." 
That at least was the thought of its orig- 
inators, *Hon. Robert C. Pitman and 
Rev. George Wolfe Shinn, D.D.f But they 
builded better than they knew. 

The other original members were * Mr. 
Walter Allen, * Hon. William W. Carruth, 
Edward W. Gate, Esq., * Rev. George W. 
Hosmer, D.D., Rev. J. W. Lindsay, D.D., 
*Hon. John C. Park, Col. Francis J. 
Parker, * Rev. Bradford K. Peirce, D.D., 
* Mr. Henrv C. Sawin, Lincoln R. Stone, 
^LD.,t *Gen. Adin B. Underwood. 
* Deceased. t Still in membership. 



LITERARY AND SOCIAL CLUBS 



113 



Of the present active members about 
one quarter are clergymen, another quarter 
may be classed as business men, and the 
remainder as lawyers, educators, doctors 
of medicine, etc. This gives the advantage 
of discussions from many different stand- 
points. 

The presidents of the club have been 
as follows: Hon. Robert C. Pitman, 1877; 
Hon. W. S. Gardner, 1878; Col. Francis 
J. Parker, 1879; Hon. John C. Park, 
1880-1881; Gen. Adin B. Underwood, 
1882; Lucius A. Buckingham, Ph.D., 
1883; Mr. Edward Sawyer, 1884 to the 
present time. 

Simplicity of organization and procedure 
has always been maintained. All needful 
permanent arrangements have been made 
by a few votes, and the club has no written 
constitution nor any formal by-laws. The 
mere "business" of an ordinary meeting — 
reading of records, correspondence, etc. — ■ 
can be despatched in ten to fifteen minutes. 
This leaves about an hour and three 
quarters for the reading of an essay and 
discussion upon its topic, closing at 9.45, 
and followed by a social hour with a simple 
collation. Regular evening meetings are 
held, usually once in two weeks, from the 
first Tuesday in October till the last half 
of May, say, 17 or 18 per season. Down 
to the present time, something over 500 
such meetings have been held. 

At the close of each season, the program 
for the next season is decided upon, and 
assignments of host and essaWst for each 
meeting are made. Members not assigned 
are liable to be called upon as substitutes. 
A member finding himself unable to per- 
form a duty secures a substitute and notifies 
the secretary. 

Each essayist selects his own topic, — 
which may be connected with his vocation, 
or otherwise. (The first one was on the 
Morals of the Young.) No preference is 
expressed for any particular line of topics, 
nor has any topic been ruled out. Entire 
frankness has always been in order, in con- 
formity with the theory that no view is 
worth holding unless it can be effectively 
defended. Such frankness has been much 
in evidence, but resulting ruptures of good 
feeling have been very few and unimpor- 
tant. A classification by subjects, in the 
order of frequency of treatment, would 
result about as follows: questions of direct 
sociological interest; of public policies; 



criticism, Hterary, historical, biographical; 
e.xcursions into theology, philosophy, and 
science; stories of travel, adventure, and 
personal experiences. 

In the long run, a club is what its mem- 
bers make it by their own contributions; 
in fact, it is little more than a part expres- 
sion of what is in the members. Mental 
initiative is always desirable. In this era 
of the printing-press, rehashes of inanities 
and conventions, ancient or modern, do 
not command attention. If the members 
of a club come together merely to exchange 
ratifications of old theories and to reassure 
themselves that it is impossible for them 
to learn anything new, it will become 
difficult for them to avoid seeing the 
futility of their proceedings; they will find 
pretexts for absence; also for shortening 
their seasons at both ends, and for lengthen- 
ing the intervals between meetings. 

Among our members there is a general 
feeling that a busy man may wisely set 
aside the time required by the duties of 
membership and attendance, for breaking 
his habitual currents of thought, and that 
his eflSciency in his ordinary work may 
gain more than it loses thereby. 

Edward S.\wyer. 



THE NEIGHBORS 

The Neighbors — a company of gentlemen, 
residents of Newton Centre — organized 
January 15, 1878, as the constitution says, 
"for mutual improvement and social cult- 
ure." 

Originally limited to a membership of 
twenty, since increased to twenty-five, it 
has counted among its members such men 
as Rev. Alvah Hovey, Rev. Samuel F. 
Smith, Edwin F. Waters, Rev. Oakman 
S. Stearns, Charles Peter Clark, Alden 
Speare, Rev. Amos E. Lawrence, Elisha 
Bassett, Rev. Samuel L. Caldwell, Rev. 
Bradford K. Peirce, Walter Allen, Stephen 
Greene, all of whom are deceased, men 
who were distinguished in various walks 
in life. 

Of the five men who constituted the 
number at the first meeting, only Hon. 
Robert R. Bishop and William E. Webster 
survive, and their names still honor the 
roll. Of the first fifteen members who 
practically completed the organization, be- 
sides the two survivors just mentioned, 
Edward H. Mason, Hon. Albert L. Har- 



114 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON 



wood, and Arthur C. Walworth are the 
only ones who remain — they are still 
Neighbors. 

At first the meetings were held fort- 
nightly, from the middle of September 
till the middle of June, with topics for 
papers and discussion arranged for by the 
executive committee. In later years the 
meetings have been held monthly from 
October to May with topics chosen by 
the members, each preparing a paper to be 
read in turn. 

The Neighbors are perhaps unique in 
having no permanent president, the host 
of the evening acting as the presiding 
officer for that evening. The only officers 
are an executive committee, a secretary, 
and an assistant secretary. 

Ladies were not admitted as members, 
but the rule was made elastic in one in- 
stance, when the late Mrs. Thomas Nicker- 
son was by unanimous vote asked to 
become an honorary member, and she con- 
tinued in that relation till her death. 

An interesting quotation from the records 
of an early meeting, when the ladies had 
been invited, shows that the eyes of the 
members were opened to the delights of 
their society, but at the same time they 
set their faces against the pleasure, as if 
some unforeseen danger threatened if the 
invitation was oft repeated. It was at the 
fifth meeting after the organization when 
the records read, — 

"This meeting of the club differed from pre- 
vious meetings in having the presence of the wives 
of its members. The invitation to the ladies was, 
as the event proved, a very pleasant innovation 
upon the custom of the club, but by common 
consent is not to be considered as a precedent 
often to be followed." 

It could not be that the presence of the 
ladies could interfere with the "social 
culture," one of the objects for which the 
club was formed. Could it be that the 
"mental improvement" would be checked 
by their presence? History still leaves 
the problem unsolved. 

The papers prepared and discussed 
during this period of nearly thirty years 
have covered the widest range of topics 
in law, ethics, sociology, religion, govern- 
ment, mechanics, education; in fact, al- 
most every subject that could be named 
has been presented for consideration and 
discussion. Some topics of vital present- 
dav interest have awakened the most 



intense and lively interchange of thought, 
while some technical subjects treated, 
valuable as contributions, have hardly 
been discussable because as a rule ministers 
know little about mechanics and laymen 
are not up in the mysteries of who wrote 
the Pentateuch. 

The Neighbors have been and are law- 
yers, professors, editors, business men, 
architects, presidents of colleges, Demo- 
crats, Republicans, and Mugwumps, and 
with all shades of religious belief. Diver- 
sity of opinion, tolerance of expression, 
and freedom of speech have made the 
organization strong in its homogeneity 
and with every prospect of a long-continued 
existence. Avery L. R.and. 



NEWTON CENTRE READING CLUB 
As far as we can find out, we have the 
honor of being the oldest Woman's Club 
in the Newtons, — having been organized 
on January 27, 1879, ^^'''h a charter mem- 
bership of twenty, to which number we still 
hold. At that first gathering everything 
was informal, and for many months there 
were no officers, no voting, no minutes of 
the last meeting. There has been some 
little deviation from these early methods; 
we now have a president, vice-president, 
secretary and treasurer, a:id e.xecutive com- 
mittee, but our aim is to waste as little time 
as possible over so-called "business." We 
still lay our things down in the next room, 
instead of more elaborately going upstairs 
to "lay them aside." We still dare to 
bring homely work. We do not have 
"functions," nor do we "attire ourselves" 
for the club meetings. The two features 
which our club emphasizes are, "loyalty 
of each member to the club and to one an- 
other" and "simplicity." We meet once 
a week, from October to April, at the homes 
of the different members. 

The first book read in the club was 
Washington In'ing's "Life of Oliver Gold- 
smith." That was followed by "The Life 
and Letters of Macaulay," by Sir George 
Trevelyan, just then published. Through 
this book the club became so interested 
in their English heritage that the next step 
was to take up a systematic study of Eng- 
lish history, with Green's "Shorter History 
of the English People" as a text-book. 
Those were the days when the teaching 
of English literature was very slight and 



LITERARY AND SOCIAL CLUBS 



115 



inefficient. A paragraph or two relating 
to the author, a few extracts from his writ- 
ings, that was all. Even that was so sepa- 
rated from its appropriate environment in 
histor}' that its effect was lost. So when 
in the course of historic events we came 
upon the name of an author, and read some 
of his writings, it was often our first real 
acquaintance with him, and we appreciated 
the gem in its proper setting. 

Three winters were devoted to the study 
of Rome, three to Spain. In 1874 we took 
up art and science in the Victorian era. 
After our study of the Victorian era, we 
were quick to "feel the touch of common 
blood," and, turning to younger England, 
the new "St. Botolph Town," spent three 
years on the study of Boston. From the 
"Modern Athens," we turned to the great 
European writers, such as Dumas, Victor 
Hugo, Tolstoi, and later to Plato, Socrates, 
and Dante. Now, for two w-inters we have 
been studying Shakspeare. 

Pre-eminently we are a literan,- club as 
far as work goes, but our highest aim has 
been to give help to the heart, as well as a 
greater stimulus to the mind: "Always in 
joy or sorrow, what has touched one mem- 
ber has touched all; and in that sympathy 
has been our greatest strength." Through 
our club fellowship we have gained a 
broader outlook, and, as our former presi- 
dent so well expressed it, "We rejoice that 
W'e meet in a growing spirit of freedom, 
tolerance, understanding, and charitable- 
ness toward all the world." 

"What I must do, is all that concerns 
me, and not what the people think. It is 
easy in the world to live after the world's 
opinion; it is easy in solitude to live after 
your owTi; but the great man is he, who, 
in the midst of the crowd, keeps with per- 
fectsweetness the independence of solitude." 
(Emerson.) 

Mary Eliz.^beth Polhemus. 



CHAUTAUQUA CLUB 
The Newton Highlands C. L. S. C. was 
organized in 1880 bv seven ladies, of whom 
Mrs. J. F. C. Hyde, IMrs. Eliot Hyde, and 
Mrs. W. Scott Richards are stiU in active 
membership. As the name implies, this 
organization was originally a Chautauqua 
Circle, and it has always been a study club. 
After four years of regular Chautauqua 
work, independent courses of study were 



combined with Chautauqua courses. Later 
the study became altogether independent, 
being planned each year for the succeeding 
year by a committee chosen for that pur- 
pose. 

During the nearly twenty-seven years 
since the founding of this club, the re- 
search undertaken by its members has 
carried them far into the fields of travel, 
history, literature, art, biography, archae- 
ology, music, science, nature, and philoso- 
phy. A zeal for study is one of the happy 
results of such a club, and the resources of 
neighboring libraries and museums are in 
constant demand. The present year's 
program includes a course in geology, a 
study of the Renaissance Period in Italy, 
two musical days, a study of "Othello," a 
day of domestic science, and a short course 
in modem plapvrights. 

The club has enjoyed many fine lectures 
on varjing subjects, and also a number of 
trips to points of interest near by. 

Its meetings are held on ^Monday after- 
noons at the homes of the members, be- 
ginning with the last Monday in September 
and ending with the annual business meet- 
ing on the first Monday in June. The ac- 
tive membership is limited to twenty-five. 

Each session represents the work of an 
individual member to whom the day has 
been assigned. The meetings are opened 
b}- the president, and the first half-hour is 
given to reports on current topics by the 
members, the rest of the time belonging 
to the regular program work. 

This organization is a constant inspira- 
tion to wider and deeper thought and so 
to nobler living. 

The officers for the present year are: 
Mrs. Martha J. Boyd, president; Mrs. 
Anna G. Whittemore, vice-president; Miss 
Ruth E. Abbott, secretary; Mrs. Stella C. 
Thompson, assistant secretary; Mrs. .Anna 
G. Whittemore, treasurer. 

Ruth E. Abbott. 



"THE PLAYERS" 
"The Players," a dramatic club, was 
organized on March 16, 1887, at a meeting 
held at City Hall, West Newton, in re- 
sponse to a circular invitation sent by Mr. 
Edward P. Call and others. The constitu- 
tion then adopted, which has remained 
substantially unchanged, states the object 
of the club to be "to produce a series of 



116 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON 



amateur performances each year at which 
a high order of plays shall be presented in 
as artistic manner as possible"; and pro- 
vides for two classes of members, — active, 
including the actors and managers, and 
associate, who are really regular sub- 
scribers. 

The first performance was given on May 
12, 1887, repeated the next evening, and 
the play was "Our Boys." Before the 
first performance there was a brief opening 
address by Hon. R. M. Pulsifer. 

For ten years the club used the City 
Hall for its performances, and when that 
was no longer available moved to Temple 
Hall, Newtonville, which was used until 
May, 1905, when further use of that hall for 
theatrical entertainments was prohibited 
under provision of the State law. 

Forty-two series of plays have been pre- 
sented. Each series consisted of two 
performances, for the members of the club, 
in addition to which on four occasions 
benefit performances were given, for the 
Newton Hospital, the Masonic Association, 
the Smith College Alumnae, and the Newton 
Boat Club. Of late years the performance 
was always preceded by a dress rehearsal 
which was carried through with every de- 
tail and as much care as any of the per- 
formances. In the early years the plays 
tended somewhat to the class commonly 
called amateur plays, but latterly successes 
on the professional stage, plays of proved 
merit, have been used almost without ex- 
ception. In character these have ranged 
from light to farce comedy, a style of play 
more within the range of amateur ability, 
and more generally acceptable to audiences, 
than plays of a more serious character or 
tragedies. 

In the forty-two series fifty-two plays 
have been presented. Two plays were 
given twice, — the one act farce "Dun- 
ducketty's Picnic," with Mr. Cheney in 
the leading role, and Gillette's " All the Com- 
forts of Home," with Mr. Stutson in the part 
of "Tom." Seventeen plays were of one act, 
one of two acts, and the rest three or four 
act plays, occupj'ing the entire evening. 
The old comedies were represented by 
"She Stoops to Conquer" and "The 
Rivals"; Mr. Gillette's successes by "All 
the Comforts of Home" and "The Private 
Secretary"; Pinero by "Sweet Lavendar," 
"The Magistrate," "School-Mistress," 
and "Dandy Dick"; Daly's adaptations 



by "A Night Off" and "Seven-Twenty- 
Eight." There was also presented " David 
Garrick," that favorite of all comedians, 
and "A Pair of Spectacles," so well known 
through Mr. Hare's performances. In 
all of these there was obtained a large 
measure of success, perhaps as large as any 
amateur organization can obtain. No 
play once announced failed of presenta- 
tion. It was a matter of pride to all in- 
terested to make sure that each perform- 
ance started on time, and that every detail 
was carried out as completely as limited 
facilities permitted. That the plays have 
been enjoyed by the associate members and 
their friends has been evident from the 
constant support of the club, and from the 
expressions of approval equally apparent 
to those in the audience and on the stage. 

There have been but three presidents of 
the club: Mr. E. P. Call from 1887 to 
1889, Mr. George H. Phelps from 1889 
to 1897, and Mr. G. R. Pulsifer since 
1897. 

The writer knows that the amateur actor 
is generally considered merely as a target 
for rather sarcastic or derisive shafts. Yet 
his personal experience in "The Players" 
is one to which he can look back as filled 
with the solutions of interesting problems, 
with close association with keen and in- 
terested friends brought together for work 
towards a common end, the attainment of 
which was impossible without co-opera- 
tion and self-sacrifice, and he has found 
that that end when attained was the giving 
of sane pleasure to many friends. Any 
association which calls forth such recollec- 
tions can truly be deemed of real value as an 
interesting and worthy part of the social 
life of the community. 

The future of the organization is some- 
what in doubt. Friends of the club have 
been willing to spend a very considerable 
sum of money without hope of adequate 
financial return, to provide a suitable 
auditorium. Upon investigation, how- 
ever, the actual cost was found to be exces- 
sively large, and a plan which promised 
much was necessarily and wisely aban- 
doned. The north side of the city needs 
some place of this character, however, and 
some day it will doubtless be provided. 
When it is, the members of the club hope 
to be able to take up again what was at once 
hard work and good fun. 

Geo. Royal Pulsifer. 



LITERARY AND SOCIAL CLUBS 



117 



THE NEWTON BOAT CLUB 

The most interesting natural feature of 
Newton is the Charles River, which bounds 
the city from Brookline to Waltham and 
again between Waltham and Watertown 
and Watertown and Boston. The most 
picturesque spot is the Hemlock Gorge at 
Upper Falls, but the long stretch from 
Lower Falls to Waltham is more varied 
and beautiful than any like length of river 
in Eastern Massachusetts. It combines 
the charm of the narrow stream in a well- 
defined channel and the lake with broad 
reaches and deep coves. Too small for 
any commercial 
use it is increas- 
ingly used as a 
water park. 

This use began 
probably in the 
'6o's, when there 
were a few clumsy 
row boats kept 
for pleasure boat- 
ing. Later some 
of the athletic 
young men of the 
city turned their 
attention to row- 
ing, and on Sep- 
tember I, 1875, 
organized the 
Newton Boat 
Club, to further 
promote and en- 
courage this ^"EWTo: 
sport. Every 

year the club held a regatta and races 
were rowed between the members and 
against other clubs in single, double, 
and four oared shells. The course was 
usually in the broad lake-like part of the 
river by Fox Island. It was a short course, 
only about half a mile long, and hence a 
turn was necessary, and the lily pads were 
the cause of many troubles, but there was 
much good sport and much excitement. 

Upon the introduction of the canvas 
canoe the river became too crowded for the 
delicate shells, and the club abandoned the 
sterner sport for the gentler pleasure of 
canoeing. The club has no racing boats 
now, but its house is filled with canoes. 

The club's quarters were first in Rams- 
dell's boat house on the Weston shore at 
Riverside. In 1878 it leased land opposite 
Norumbega Tower, and built a modest 



house, and in 1886, when racing was aban- 
doned, returned to Riverside and its present 
location, which it leased from a corporation 
controlled by members. 

Up to 1897 the club existed as a voluntary 
association, but on January 13th the present 
organization, a corporation, was formed, 
which purchased the property and included 
all the members of the old association. 

The activity of the club does not cease 
with the passing of warm weather, but dur- 
ing the winter season it goes in for bowling, 
whist, and dancing. Its house is but 
roughly fitted for such purposes, but any 




I-B, RIVERSIDE 



shortcomings in this respect are ignored, 
and the members have quite as good 
sport as their friends who are favored with 
more elaborate and comfortable homes. 

To the people of Newton the club is best 
known by its open air concerts given on 
Saturday evenings in June. One must go 
far to find a prettier scene than here, with 
the softly lighted house and grounds and 
the massed canoes on the river. No other 
club has a similar opportunity. 

While bowling, band concerts and canoe- 
ing are now the only activities, in its early 
days the club made a name for itself 
in minstrel shows. These were highly 
successful and were the means of helping 
the revenue of the club in its racing days. 

Habits of business and recreation change. 
One sport is popular at one time only to 
fall into comparative disuse in favor of 



118 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON 



another which is more attractive because 
of its novelty; but the river will always be 
at hand with its rare beauty, and as an aid 
to the enjoyment of this beauty the club 
will always have its place to fill. 

The officers of the club for 1906-1907 
were President, Robert Gorton; Vice-Pres- 
ident, Eugene E. Pettee; Secretary, Ernest 
Booth; Treasurer, Charles E. Hatfield; 
and Captain, Frank Booth. 

Geo. Royal Pulsifer. 



THE NEWTON CLUB 
Prior to 1887 the city of Newton, though 
one municipality, was practically a col- 
lection of ten or more different villages with 



fare which comes from close and friendly 
personal intercourse. 

A realization of this state of affairs, and a 
desire to bring the different sections of the 
city into closer friendly relations, led to a 
movement on the part of a few gentlemen 
to see what could be done to better the situa- 
tion. Prominent among these were Hon. 
Samuel L. Powers and Mr. William J. 
Follett. As a result of agitation a number 
of gentlemen were invited to meet at the 
house of Mr. Austin R. Mitchell in Newton- 
ville on April 12, 1887. At this meeting j"t 
was definitely determined to organize j a 
social club which should be a club for 
the whole city. It was also determined 
that the club should be located at 




XEWTOX CLUIS, NE^\•TON^'ILLE 



a common government for all. There 
were no street car lines to connect the 
various villages one with another, and 
there was practically nothing, unless we 
except the masonic bodies, to bring the 
residents of the various villages together 
socially. The residents of the north side 
of the city knew but little socially of their 
neighbors on the south side, and those on 
the east saw but little of those on the west. 
Under such conditions there was a lack of 
appreciation of the community of in- 
terests of the various sections, a lack of that 
personal interest in one's neighbor's wel- 



Newtonville as the most central point, 
and that for the time being it should 
establish itself in the historic General 
Hull House, at the corner of Austin and 
Walnut Streets. 

A committee of twenty-one, three from 
each ward, was appointed to make an ap- 
plication for a charter and to secure the 
necessary number of members to make the 
club a success. On May nth, the tem- 
porary organization was perfected with the 
late Col. Royal M. Pulsifer as President, 
and E. W. Gate, Esq., as Secretary; and 
on Mav 26th an Act of the Legislature was 



LITERARY AND SOCIAL CLUBS 



119 



passed granting a charter for the Newton 
Club, the incorporators being Col. Royal 
M. Pulsifer, Hon. Robert R. Bishop, Hon. 
William Claflin, Hon. Henry E. Cobb, 
and their associates and successors. July 
13th of the same year the permanent 
organization was effected with Col. Royal 
M. Pulsifer as President and Edward W. 
Cate, Esq., as Secretary. 

The club grew and prospered until in 
1890 there began a movement for the erec- 
tion of a new and larger club house of its 
own. This resulted in the purchase from 
Mr. Austin R. Mitchell, in 1891, of the 
present location of the club at the corner 
of Walnut Street and Highland Avenue; 
upon this site the present club house was 
built, Mr. William J. Follett being chair- 
man of the building committee. To raise 
funds for the furnishing of the house the 
ladies held a large and successful fair, 
which was honored by the presence of Mrs. 
President Harrison and her daughter, Mrs. 
McKee. The new house was formally 
opened on October 20, 1892. The names 
of those who have held the position of 
president of the club are: Hon. Royal M. 
Pulsifer, 1887-88; Hon. Robert R. Bishop, 
1888-90; Hon. Henry E. Cobb, 1890-96; 
Hon. Samuel L. Powers, 1896-98; Hon. 
John A. Fenno, 1898-99; Col. Edwin B. 
Haskell, 1899-1901 ; James R. Carter, Esq., 
1901-03; Hon. John W. Weeks, 1904-05; 
Hon. Samuel L. Powers, 1905-06; Charles 
S. Dennison, Esq., 1906-07. 

To mention the names of all of the dis- 
tinguished citizens of Newton who have 
been members of the club would require 
more space than one would be warranted 
in taking. 

That the club has done much to accom- 
plish what the organizers sought to ac- 
complish is unquestioned, though the full 
value of its work is not always appreciated. 
There are other and good clubs in the city, 
but there is only one Newton Club. Its 
art exhibitions a few years ago were known 
beyond the state limits. Its annual June 
concerts have become a recognized city 
institution. To attend one of its dinners, 
and listen to the able and witty speakers 
who attend as guests, is a privilege much 
sought. Of late years these dinners have 
been among the most notable in Massa- 
chusetts. 

The use of the club for the public further- 
ance of any party or creed is forbidden. 



To spend a social hour, to become inter- 
ested in the personal life and in the welfare 
of those in other parts of the city, and to 
promote the common good of the city as a 
unit, is encouraged. 

Fr.\nk M. Copel.and. 



THE NEIGHBORHOOD CLUB 

The Neighborhood Club was organized 
in December, 1890, by residents of West 
Newton Hill, "to encourage social enjoy- 
ment." The first president was Frederic 
R. Cutter, and his successors have been 
George H. Phelps, Robert S. Gorham, 
and Charles F. Howland. The member- 
ship of the club is now about one hundred. 

The club hired from :\Ir. Henry B. Day 
a lot on Berkeley Street, W'est Newton, and 
there built three tennis courts and a very 
simple club house, which was devoted 
mainly to bowling. After a few years 
these premises were purchased by the 
club, and to accommodate the increasing 
membership, the club house was enlarged 
by the addition of a fourth bowling alley, 
and later a small assembly hall and new 
tennis courts. 

To the general public the Neighbor- 
hood Club has been best known through 
its invitation tennis tournaments, which 
were held from 1892 to 1895. Its tennis 
courts have been justly considered among 
the best in the country, and for several 
years players of note took part in its tour- 
naments, which were admirably managed 
by an energetic member, Mr. H. L. Aver. 
In June, 1892, the contestants were Mal- 
colm Chase, R. D. Wren, R. V. Beach, 
A. E. Wright, F. S. Mansfield, Fred H. 
Hovey, and Hugh Tallant. This tourna- 
ment was won by Hovey, with Chase 
second. In September, 1892, Hubbard, 
of California, Chase, Hovey, and Wren 
took part in an informal tournament, in 
which the honors went to Chase. In June, 
1893, the rivals were Hovey, Chase, Clar- 
ence Hobart, of New York, and W. A. 
Earned, of Cornell. In this tournament 
each player met every other player in two 
matches, and at the finish Hovey and 
Hobart were tied, each with six victories 
and two defeats. Wren was third, and 
Chase fourth. In June, 1894, Hovey, 
Hobart, Chase, Foote, of Yale, and Wren 
were the players, and finished in the order 
named, Hovey winning six matches and 



120 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON 



being defeated but once. The tournament 
of June, 1895, was notable for the presence 
of Dr. Joshua Pim, the tennis champion 
of England and Ireland, and H. S. Mahony, 
his partner in doubles. The American 
participants were Hovey, Hobart, Chase, 
and Earned. This tournament aroused 
wide-spread interest, and was closely 
followed by all tennis experts and admirers. 
Dr. Pim and Mr. Mahony were tied for 
first place, and in the play-off the former 
won in a five-set match. In an exhibition 
match in doubles Hobart and Hovey de- 
feated Pim and Mahony three straight 
sets, but in singles the Englishmen clearly 
proved their superiority and lost but one 
match, that of Pim against Hobart. 

Though these tournaments brought the 
Neighborhood Club into prominence, the 
chief object of the club has always been to 
promote an intimate acquaintance and a 
neighborly spirit among its members. In 
season its tennis courts have been in con- 
stant use by members and their families, 
and during the winter months bowling 
matches and social gatherings, and occa- 
sional concerts and lectures in the club 
house have brought the members together 
in friendly relations, with the result that 
there are few communities where the resi- 
dents are more intimately or pleasantly 
acquainted. The ideals of the club have 
been simphcity and genuineness in social 
intercourse, and its members feel that 
those ideals are highly important and 
worthy of their support and favor. 



THE HUNNEWELL CLUB 

The Hunnewell Hill Club was formed 
in the year 1895, in a dwelling-house on 
Hunnewell Hill, by a few of the residents 
of that locality, and its membership con- 
fined strictly to that immediate neighbor- 
hood. Many happy recollections still 
dwell in the minds of its first members and 
projectors of the good times enjoyed in the 
old house, where entire freedom of speech 
and action was a predominant feature. It 
was often called the "Kindergarten Club," 
yet it thrived and grew. Its first and 
predominant principle of temperance was 
strictly adhered to, and this feature brought 
into its membership many who were here- 
tofore unknown in club circles. 
I The growth of the membership became 



so great that an enlarged sphere of action 
was at last determined upon, and the result 
was an application to the State, under date 
of September 25, 1897, for a charter, which 
was granted by an Act of the Legislature, 
incorporating the club under the name of 
"The Hunnewell Club of Newton." The 
charter was issued by the Secretary of the 
State, November 15, 1899. 

The first business meeting of the organi- 
zation under its new charter occurred on 
the evening of December 4, 1897, in the 
house of the Hunnewell Hill Club. This 
meeting was for the purpose of organizing 
temporarily, and on December 9th another 
meeting was held, to which all persons who 
had applied for membership were invited. 
On this occasion the temporary board of 
officers resigned, and the first permanent 
board was elected, consisting of : Presi- 
dent, Edward W. Pope; Vice-President, 
George Agry, Jr.; Secretary, J. Edward 
Hills; Treasurer, John D. Barrows; Di- 
rectors, Hermon E. Hibbard, Samuel 
Farquhar, Albert B. Jewell, Charles W. 
Hall, Francis H. Nichols, Henry W. Ken- 
dall, Walter B. Trowbridge. 

The membership at this time had 
reached the limit of one hundred and fifty, 
and one of the first acts of the new organiza- 
tion was to increase the limit to two 
hundred. 

On April i, 189S, the club took posses- 
sion of the present club house, erected at 
the private expense of Messrs. Stanley 
Brothers, to whom the members of this 
organization are under lasting obligations 
for their generous provision. The club 
house was thrown open for the first time 
on the evening of Saturday, April 2, the 
occasion being for members only, and 
known as "Inspection Night." The for- 
mal opening, or "Reception Night," was 
held on Wednesday, April 14th, the event 
being enjoyed by a very large number of 
Newton citizens and guests from out of 
town. 

The club has since increased its member- 
ship to two hundred and fifty, and has 
become firmly established as one of the 
attractions and special features of this 
part of our city; its club house is recog- 
nized as the home of an organization estab- 
lished for the purpose of adding to the 
comfort and happiness of its members and 
their friends. 

Mardis E. Gleason. 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON 



THE BRAE-BURN COUNTRY CLUB 
One of the institutions of Newton is 
the Brae-Burn Country Ckib at West 
Newton, where its members and their 
friends are learning the value of outdoor 
life and sports, combined with all the 
comforts of home. Starting in a very 
modest way, it was incorporated as the 
Brae-Burn Golf Club in 1897, with one 
hundred members, and a nine hole golf 
course. In order to accommodate the 
large number of people desiring member- 
ship, more land was acquired, the golf 
course extended to eighteen holes, and a 
fine club house erected, one view of which 
is here shown. The name was changed 
to Brae-Burn Country Club in 1905, and 
the membership increased until at the 
present time there are six hundred mem- 
bers and a long waiting list. 

It is essentially a family club, the wives 
and children of members enjoying equal 
privileges with the members. There are 
a good number of bedrooms at the disposal 
of members, and from May to November 
they are in constant demand. 

The golf course, conceded to be one of 
the best in New England, offers great 
variety in its hills, valleys, and brooks. A 
bridle path skirts the golf course for nearly 
its entire length, and from many points 
gives commanding views of the surround- 
ing country. 

The winter sports of the club are as 
complete and satisfying as the summer 
sports. On the artificial pond skating, 
hockey, and curling are enjoyed to the 
full, by young and old. On carnival 
nights the scene is one of great beauty, 
with the profusion of electric lights and 
Japanese lanterns, a full band adding zest 
to the enjoyment. Tobogganning has not 
been an unqualified success, owing to the 
location of the slide, but in the winter of 
1907-08 a change of location will insure 
its permanency, weather of course per- 
mitting. 

The club is a haven of rest and relaxa- 
tion for tired housekeepers, and it is quite 
the thing for members to close their houses 
temporarily and take up their abode at 
the club, for a few weeks at a time. 

George A. Frost. 



THE NORTH GATE CLUB 

The North Gate Club is situated in 
North Gate Park, off Waltham Street, 
West Newton. The club-house is the re- 
sult of the generosity of Mr. Henry B. Day 
and Capt. S. Edward Howard, and cost up- 
wards of $12,000. The club is compara- 
tively young, having been organized in 
1901, and the club-house was not com- 
pleted and formally opened to the members 
until April 29, 1902. 

The club started with eighty-six members 
and the number is about the same to-day, 
the majority of members residing in New- 
tonville and W'est Newton. It was the in- 
tention of Mr. Day to start a club which 
should be a neighborhood club for the 
young men of West Newton, though the 
membership was not limited to West 
Newton residents, and to-day there are 
members residing in the Newtons, Wal- 
tham, and Weston. 

The club-house has a large hall, with an 
ample stage, and it is suitable for either 
entertainments or dancing parties. It is 
well patronized by the 3-oung people of 
West Newton. 

There are four tennis courts laid out on 
the grounds of the club, two dirt and two 
grass courts. 

The club has taken an active interest 
in athletics, supporting a base-ball team, 
as well as bowling and pool teams. The 
bowling team of the club has been very 
successful, capturing the first prize in the 
Newton Bowling League for the last two 
winters. Last winter this team held every 
record in the Newton League, for individ- 
ual and team totals and single strings. 
Ch.\rles E. Hatfield. 



As the Mirror has its limitations and does 
not purport to serve as a guide-book or di- 
rectory, it has been thought best to pub- 
lish sketches of the larger clubs, and, in the 
case of literary clubs, of those only which 
are twenty-five years of age or more. 

A list of the younger clubs is here given, ^ 
a list not including church clubs, and com- 
plete as far as the members of the magazine 
committee in the different wards have been 
able to gain information. 



LITERARY AND SOCIAL CLUBS 



123 



The Art League of Auburndale, whose 
object is to beautify its school buildings 
and further the aesthetic taste of its mem- 
bers. 

The Beacon Club of Waban, a men's 
club, whose object is social. 

The Civic Club of Newton Centre, for 
the purpose of continuing interest in pub- 
lic affairs of those citizens who have served 
the city either as councilmen, aldermen, 
or mayor. 

The Charity Sewing Club of New- 
ton Centre, which does local charitv work. 

The Eight O'Clock Club of Newton, the 
Fortnightly Club of Newton Centre, the 
Friday Afternoon Club of Newton High- 
lands, and the West End Literary Club of 
Newton Highlands are literary clubs. 

The Friday Club of Newton Centre is 
philanthropic and social in its aims, the 
Wednesday Club of Newton Centre is 
literary and charitable. 

The Travelers' Club of Newtonville, the 
Journey Club of West Newton, and the 
Travelers at Home Club of Newton Centre 
are kindred in their purpose, — the study 
of different countries. 

The Monday Evening Club of Newton 
is engaged in the study of politics, civic 
questions, scientific subjects, and current 
events; the Musical Club of Auburndale 
in the rendition of works, vocal and instru- 
mental, of prominent composers; and the 
Villagers of Newton Centre has for its 
purpose mutual improvement and social 
culture. 

One other club remains to be mentioned 
which is, as far as we know, the only club 
of its kind in the city. Because of its 
unique character, and that it may be better 
known, the following account is here given. 

THE NEWTON INDUSTRIAL CLUB 
In April, 1904, a group of seven girls, 
five of whom were then working in the 
Saxony Worsted Mills, met together one 
Thursday evening in the kindergarten 
room of the Jackson School, through the 
kindness of the school committee, and 
formed a small club for social and indus- 
trial objects. The club called itself the 



S. S. S., and its membership never rose 
above ten or twelve. 

In April, 1905, another and similar club 
was formed of si.xteen or seventeen younger 
girls. These clubs did good work in mil- 
linery, sewing, and embroidery, and en- 
joyed many pleasant hours together as the 
friendship grew between the members. 

When the clubs met in the fall of 1906 
there was great difficulty in deciding on any 
night in the week when all could be present. 
So it was decided to combine the two clubs 
and invite more girls working in other 
places to join them, and have a meeting 
every night with different classes for work 
and one evening each week for entirely 
social purposes. 

In June, 1906, the club organized itself. 
There were eighty-five members present 
at this meeting, and the name chosen was 
the Newton Industrial Club. A president, 
vice-president, secretary, and treasurer, 
with assistants, were then elected. 

The regular meetings were resumed on 
the 30th of September, the only change in 
the management being to convert the cook- 
ing class into a physical culture and dancing 
class. All of the classes are conducted by 
trained teachers, who, as well as their 
assistants, give their services to the 
club. 

In January, 1907, the club joined the 
Massachusetts Association of Women 
Workers. The business meeting held on 
Friday, January 11, was important, for on 
that day the club adopted its constitution, 
which had been drawn up previously by a 
committee of seven members. This con- 
stitution was then printed and circulated 
among the members, who are now re- 
quired to sign it and pay an annual fee of 
twenty-five cents, besides the five cents a 
lesson that is asked in the classes. The 
second article of the constitution is es- 
pecially interesting, as it states the object 
of the club, which is "to increase the mu- 
tual happiness and helpfulness of its mem- 
bers, both socially and industrially, and to 
create a centre where opportunities of en- 
joyment, friendship, and improvement 
can be found." 

Annie Claflin Ellis. 



THE NEWTON FEDERATION OF WOMEN'S 
CLUBS AND THE FEDERATED CLUBS 



THE Newton Federation of Women's 
Clubs was organized on May 17, 
1895. A paper on "The Real 
Purpose of Clubs" had been read by 
Mrs. George G. Phipps, of Newton 
Highlands, before the Newton Social 
Science Club, late in the preceding year; 
and the Newton Federation was an 
outgrowth of that paper. Eleven of the 
women's clubs of Newton united to form 
this federation. While several clubs have 
withdrawn, others have taken their places, 
and the number of clubs to-day is twelve. 
Doubtless several other clubs will be 
added in the near future. 

As the term of the president's oflSce 
is limited, there had been, up to May, 
1906, five presidents: Mrs. E. N. L. Walton, 
West Newton; Mrs. F. N. Peloubet, 
Auburndale; Mrs. W. H. Blodgett, New- 
ton; Mrs. H. H. Carter, Newtonville; 
Mrs. C. G. Wetherbee, Newton Highlands. 

The officers for 1906-1907 are: Presi- 
dent, Mrs. B. E. Taylor, Newton Centre; 
Vice-Presidents, Mrs. J. W. Barber, New- 
ton, Mrs. E. C. Adams, Newtonville, 
Mrs. J. H. Pillsbury, Waban; Recording 
Secretary, Miss Grace M. Burt; Cor- 
responding Secretary, Mrs. Edward R. 
Hall, Newtonville; Treasurer, Miss Lilla 
A. Rider, Auburndale; Auditor, ]Mrs. 
L. P. Everett, Newton Upper Falls. 

Work of the Federation is accom- 
plished through its standing committees, 
except when unusual work is undertaken; 
then special committees are appointed. 
The standing committees are: the Social 
Committee; the Social Service Committee; 
the School Suffrage Committee; and the 
Nominating Committee. 

The Executive Board holds four regular 
meetings each year, at which all business 
of the Federation is discussed and ar- 
ranged. This board is composed of the 
officers of the Federation, the presidents 
of federated clubs, chairmen of committees, 
and delegates from the clubs, one for 
every fifty in their membership. Guests 
from federated clubs may attend board 
meetings, without the privilege of voting. 
The Federation holds three open meet- 



ings each year; one of an educational 
character, one social, and the annual 
meeting, in May, at which most interesting 
reports of the work of the clubs are made. 
This has usually been an all-day meet- 
ing, with a lunch served at noon under 
the care of one "hostess club," and a 
musical or dramatic entertainment in the 
afternoon. 

Since the organization of the Federa- 
tion many subjects of vital interest have 
been investigated and discussed. Public 
education, household economics, beauti- 
fying the city, condition of trees, our need 
of a tree warden, and public health, have 
all received serious attention. The Fed- 
eration has brought to its members, and the 
public, many prominent speakers and 
educators. Through the efl'orts of the 
Federation, a police matron was appointed 
in 1896; a steam launch and patrol boats 
were placed on the Charles River, for 
protection and life saving; plaster casts 
of Minerva and Sophocles were presented 
to the Newton High School; and through 
its School Suffrage Committee the Federa- 
tion has been influential in placing women 
on the school board. More recently 
$874.90, collected from the federated 
clubs, was presented to the Hospital Aid 
Association. A comfortable shelter for 
street-car passengers at the Walnut Street 
bridge, Newtonville, has been secured. 
Substantial aid was given the State Fed- 
eration, in connection with the bazaar 
which was held in Boston in 1906. 

Alost satisfactory, as a result of the life 
of our Federation, has been the good 
fellowship and better acquaintance between 
the women of Newton. 

The Newton Federation of Women's 
Clubs joined the State Federation in 1901. 
Helen C. Taylor. 



WEST NEWTON EDUCATIONAL 
CLUB; 

President, Mrs. Henry K. Burrison. 

In the winter of 1879-80 Massachusetts 
made women eligible to vote for School 
Committee. The following spring, a few 



THE NEWTON FEDERATION OF WOMEN'S CLUBS 



125 



West Newton women met to plan how to 
make use of this new school suffrage law. 
It was proposed to form a club, and a com- 
mittee of three was appointed to define the 
object of the club, to draft a constitution 
and report in one week. 

On July 28, 1880, the West Newton 
Women's Educational Club was organized, 
with twelve members; a constitution 
adopted and officers chosen, Mrs. Walton 
being the president. Of the twelve first 
members, three are still in the club. Since 
1883 the club has met on the second and 
fourth Friday of each month, from Novem- 
ber to May, in the parlors of the old Uni- 
tarian church. For twenty years Mrs. 
Walton was president. On her resigna- 
tion, the by-laws were so changed as to 
limit the president's term of service to three 
years. Her successors have been Mrs. 
Anna L. Bailey, ]Mrs. M. Theresa Rowe, 
and Mrs. Harriet C. Burrison. The 
members have by their untiring, self- 
forgetful service made the club a most 
harmonious and efficient organization. 

As our name (Educational) implies, our 
object has been to awaken and keep alive 
a general interest in all good social, in- 
tellectual, and moral movements. Our 
first real work accomplished was the intro- 
duction of sewing, by special teachers, in 
all our grammar schools. After tem- 
perance teaching was ordered, we secured 
Mr. Arthur Boyden, Principal of the 
Bridgewater Normal School, to speak 
to the teachers of the grammar grades 
about his plans for the arrangement of 
topics and for the teaching of this subject. 

We have tried to arouse a deeper in- 
terest in the formation of our school boards. 
We have had eminent speakers from abroad 
and from our own community, not a few. 
Many of our club members have given 
us very valuable papers, and an afternoon 
has often been devoted to descriptions of 
summer outings. Many classes have been 
formed. For ten years, Mrs. L. G. Pratt 
held an art class at her home. In other 
homes current events, history, literature, 
and parliamentary practice classes have 
met, while courses in cooking and physical 
training have been given by qualified 
teachers. 

One other class, formed for the study 
of municipal affairs, will long be remem- 
bered. The topics studied were : the his- 
tory of Newton, its old landmarks, govern- 



ment, industries, finances, charities, health 
department, sewerage, police regulations, 
schools, and libraries; the closing topic was 
a mock election, with the appointment of 
assessors who took their oath before the 
justice of the peace and made their May 
visitation. The taxed women were duly 
registered. We had our ward caucus and 
instructed our delegates, and for balloting 
used a regular ballot-box (loaned for the 
occasion). This was a most valuable 
and amusing object-lesson. 

For social life, we have our annual re- 
ception at the commencement of the 
season, our gentlemen's night in January, 
and our annual supper in April. 

To some extent our work reaches beyond 
our immediate community; we belong to 
the Newton Federation, the ^Massachusetts 
Federation, and the General Federation; 
in each of which organizations some of our 
members either have been officers or have 
contributed papers. We support scholar- 
ships at Tuskegee and Hampton; have sent 
a valuable travelling library to the Cumber- 
land Mountain region, through the efforts 
of our former president, Mrs. Anna L. 
Bailey, and send every year, to various 
places in the South, contributions of books, 
clothing, etc. 

On the 26th of January, 1906, we cele- 
brated our twenty-fifth anniversary, a mem- 
orable event, showing that we have out- 
grown our childhood, but are hale and 
strong and pressing on to better things. 



NEWTONVILLE WOMAN'S GUILD; 

President, Mrs. Wallace C. Boyden. 

The Newtonville Woman's Guild orig- 
inated in the brain of Mrs. John W. Dickin- 
son of Newtonville, wife of the then Secre- 
tary of the State Board of Education of 
Massachusetts. It was organized in 1884 
and its first regular fortnightly meeting was 
held at the Hull House — the home of Mrs. 
John L. Roberts — on April 4, 1884. 

As its constitution states, the object of 
the Guild is to unite the ladies of Newton- 
ville in charitable work and in etTorts for 
social intercourse and intellectual progress. 

WTien the Guild was founded, its prin- 
cipal philanthropic charge was the Newton 
Hospital, which then existed only in embryo, 
but money was laid aside and its first ex- 
penditure was for the furnishing of the 
dining-room of the new hospital. When a 



126 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON 



few years later, the Training School for 
Nurses at the hospital was started, the Guild 
supported this for a year, by which time 
it had become self-supporting. For nine 
years the Guild maintained a free bed at 
the hospital, and although its charities 
have been many and varied, through all the 
years this first philanthropic charge has 
been a favorite one. 

It has been the habit of the Guild always 
to expend much more of its income for 
philanthropic purposes than for its own 
pleasure or edification. Indeed, one-half 
of the program for the year is furnished 
by its own members, and these home meet- 
ings usually call out the largest number, 
showing that some prophets are not without 
honor in their own country. As an out- 
come of this policy, a spirit of helpfulness, of 
friendly neighborliness prevails. 

It has also been its custom to investigate 
the needs of the city and to promote all 
public-spirited movements for civic im- 
provement, of which the latest instance is 
the contribution of $750 toward the pur- 
chase of the Claflin estate. 

The Guild meets on the first and third 
Tuesdays of each month from November to 
May. Its work is efficiently carried on by 
seven committees, — educational, music, 
hospital, industrial, charitable, social, and 
flower. Through its charitable committee, 
the Guild forms a branch of the Needlework 
Guild of America, and the work in this line 
increases greatly from year to year. 

At the present date the Guild numbers 
248. It is a charter member of the General, 
State, and City Federations of Women's 
Clubs. 

It celebrated its twenty-first birthday in 
1905 and is now pressing on towards its 
twenty-fifth anniversary, trusting that much 
opportunity for usefulness lies before it. 

Miss Amelia A. Smead was the Guild's 
first president. She was succeeded by 
Mrs. George T. Hill, who acted in this 
capacity for nine years, and to Mrs. Hill the 
Guild owes a large debt of gratitude for 
her wise guidance. 

The presidents since Mrs. Hill have been 
Mrs. H. H. Carter, Miss Margaret C. Wor- 
cester, Mrs. William Hollings, Mrs. Frank 
T. Benner, and Mrs. Wallace C. Boyden. 
Since 1886 — with the e.xception of one year 
— the Guild has had the good fortune to 
have Mrs. Mary R. Martin serve as Re- 
cording Secretary. 



THE NEWTON SOCIAL SCIENCE 

CLUB; 

President, Mrs. Fred H. Tucker. 

In January, 1886, at the suggestion of 
Mrs. J. Herbert Sawyer, six women met in- 
formally in the parlor of Mrs. Henry W. 
Wellington, Newton, to discuss the ad- 
visability of forming a club to promote 
better acquaintance upon the basis of 
something real to talk about. Thus the 
Newton Social Science Club had its origin. 

At the first meeting it was decided to 
meet weekly, to limit the membership to 
12, and to confine the study and discussion 
to the political, educational, philanthropic, 
and reform movements of the day or sulj- 
jects bearing directly thereon. The first 
topic assigned was prison reform, and 
the resulting discussion and investigation 
continued for three weeks. 

The membership has been slowly raised 
to 100. Until 1898 the meetings were held 
at the homes of members; since that time, 
at the Hunnewell Club House. The regu- 
lar meetings are devoted wholly to work, 
but the club has enjoyed an occasional 
social affair, a tea or an all-day meeting 
with luncheon, a "gentlemen's night," or 
an entertainment with reception and tea 
for the benefit of the Vacation School. 

The annual dues and initiation fees are 
now $3 each. From these are paid the 
current expenses, and an annual sum is set 
aside toward a permanent club home. 
The regular philanthropic work is sup- 
ported entirely by voluntary contributions. 
Since 1892 the club has given an annual 
scholarship of $70 for an Indian student 
at Hampton. 

The chief outside activity of the Social 
Science Club has been its Vacation Indus- 
trial School at Nonantum. In April, 1887, 
Mrs. Wellington gave a paper setting forth 
the need of manual training from an edu- 
cational standpoint and industrial training 
from an economic point of view. IMuch 
discussion followed and many proposals 
were made, but no action was taken until 
May, 1888, when Mrs. Sawyer read a paper 
outlining a definite scheme for a vacation 
industrial school at Thompsonville, a plan 
substantially put into effect the same season. 
This was probably the first school of its 
kind, and as such it has attracted the at- 
tention of John Graham Brooks, Prof. 
Zueblin, and others. The first season the 



I I 




128 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON 



school was for girls exclusively, and only 
sewing was taught, by one paid teacher 
with volunteer assistants. It had a mem- 
bership of 35 and an average attendance of 
24. The next season the club removed 
the school to Nonantum, as a larger field 
and one more accessible to the club workers, 
leaving the Thompsonville school to be 
earned on by a Newton Centre organiza- 
tion. Mr. Wellington gave the use of the 
Athenasum building, and a carpentry class 
for boys was opened. Every year the work 
grew. More children came and new 
departments were added. 

After some years the school outgrew the 
Athenaeum and the volunteer instruction 
of club members. The use of the Jackson 
schoolhouse was granted by the city, a 
corps of regularly trained teachers was 
employed by the club, and the term was 
reduced to six weeks. There were in 1904, 
besides kindergarten and primary work, 
classes in cooking, sewing, simple dress- 
making, millinery, basketry, reseating 
chairs, and woodwork, including carpentry. 
The total enrolment was 357, with many 
turned away, especially boys who wished 
to take carpentry. 

In the fall of 1904 the city offered to 
appropriate $400 toward the expense of the 
Nonantum Industrial Vacation School for 
1905, if the Social Science Club would con- 
tribute the same amount, the school to be 
under the management of the Superin- 
tendent of Newton Public Schools. The 
offer was readily accepted, and the result 
more than justified all expectations. A 
large working force, added facilities, and 
new departments were made possible, and 
under the able management of the super- 
intendent the superiority of public over 
private control was fully demonstrated. 
One great advance was in the establishment 
of outdoor classes for children in physical 
exercises and supervised play. The same 
plan was adopted for 1906, when for the 
first time in many years every child applying 
for admission was accommodated. The 
total enrolment was 514, — 216 boys and 
298 girls. The average enrolment was 
423 and the average attendance 346. The 
ages ranged from 3 to 15 years. The total 
expense for this term was $880.23. The 
city has made and the club has accepted 
the same offer for the summer of 1907. 

In the spring of 1906 Mr. George Max- 
well of Newton made a most generous offer 



of assistance in starting a school garden for 
the children in Nonantum. The necessary 
money was easily collected, the use of a 
suitable plot of land upon Jackson Road 
was donated by the J. Sturgis Potter estate, 
and a school garden was successfully con- 
ducted from June i to September 28 as a 
department of the Nonantum Vacation 
School. The average daily attendance was 
100, and there was a waiting list of 100 
names. The city, assisted by the Social 
Science Club, will continue the work this 
summer on an enlarged scale. 

The total expenditure of money l)y the 
club for the Vacation School is about 
$9500, and the total amount which will 
have passed through the treasury for all 
purposes from the organization of the club 
to the end of the present season is over 
$i6,ooc. 



NEWTON EQUAL SUFFRAGE 
LEAGUE; 

President, Mrs. George F. Lowell. 

On September 21, 18S3, a large gather- 
ing of people met at the home of Mr. and 
Mrs. George A. Walton, West Newton, to 
discuss the expediency of forming an or- 
ganization to help further the work for 
equal suffrage. Col. T. W. Higginson 
and Lucy Stone were both present, and 
spoke, as did also Mr. Henry B. Blackwell, 
who predicted that with equal sutTrage, 
would come temperance, peace, and reform 
of social evils. 

On .\pril 3, 1886, friends of the measure 
convened in the Allen Schoolhouse in 
West Newton; adopted a constitution 
forming the league; and a committee was 
appointed to secure names of those who 
would serve as officers. At the next meeting 
Hon. William Claflin (e.x-Governor) was 
elected the first president, with Mr. Marcus 
Morton, of West Newton, vice-president. 

The object of the league is to procure 
the right of suffrage for women, to effect 
such changes in the laws as shall place 
women in all respects on an equal legal 
footing with men, to combine the Woman 
Suffrage sentiment in Newton, to circulate 
Woman Suffrage petitions and Woman 
Suffrage literature, and endeavor to have 
men of integrity nominated and elected to 
the legislature, who favor municipal suf- 
frage for women. 

We believe that men and women are 



THE NEWTON FEDERATION OF WOMEN'S CLUBS 



129 



natural complements of one another, and 
that as long as women are denied the elective 
franchise, they suffer a great wrong and 
society a deep and incalculable injury. 



NEWTON HIGHLANDS MONDAY 
CLUB; 

President, Miss Katherine L. Bail. 

"Believing that the elevation of woman 
is the elevation of the home, the church, 
and of humanity," the Monday Club 
was formed in October, 1886, by Mrs. 
Kathleen ]M. Phipps, who for seven years 
was its beloved president, followed by 
Mrs. Annie M. Cobb, Mrs. G. Augusta 
Nickerson, Mrs. Harriett E. Shaw, Mrs. 
Minerva C. Stone, Mrs. Retta W. Wether- 
bee, Mrs. Annie I. Eaton, and Miss Kathe- 
rine L. Bail. 

It has always been a study club in every 
sense of the word, and in these days of 
many clubs, it is a novelty to find one 
that does such methodical studying as 
the Monday Club. The usual super- 
ficiality is lacking, for much research work 
is done in preparing the original papers 
which each member is required to write 
every year. Wlien one considers the 
subjects taken up during the last twenty 
years, it will readily be seen that much 
has been accomplished. 

Our own country, most of the countries 
of Europe, and India have been some of 
the subjects studied. All sides and places, 
political and social, as well as the art, 
literature, and people of these lands have 
been carefully considered. 

In connection with the work, there have 
been many fine lectures from prominent 
men and women, such as Mrs. Mary 
Livermore, Mrs. Elizabeth Stuart Phelps 
Ward, Lucy Stone, Lucy Larcom, Heze- 
kiah Butterworth, Alice Stone Blackwell, 
Dr. Griffis, Miss O. M. E. Rowe, :Margaret 
Deland, Rabbi Fleischer, Peter MacQueen, 
Alice Freeman Palmer, May Sleeper Rug- 
gles, Schuyler Matthews, Dr. William 
B)'ron Forbush, E.x-Gov. John L. Bates, 
Lucia Ames Mead, Mr. Edwin D. Mead, 
Rev. Thomas Van Ness, Seiiorita Caroline 
Huidobro. 

When the subject was Germany, half 
of the year was devoted to German lit- 
erature under Frau Lilienthal, a native 
teacher. The writers were carefully 
studied, bringing out many deep and spir- 



ited discussions on the philosophy and 
ethics of the German writings. 

But with all the studious work that has 
been undertaken and successfully accom- 
plished, the charitable and philanthropic 
sides have not been neglected. Every 
year, a sum has been devoted to local 
charities, and help has been given in other 
ways to outside needs. All the demands 
of state and city federations have been 
cheerfully met. So that the Monday Club 
of Newton Highlands feels that it has 
faithfully lived up to its motto: — 

In good things, Unity; 

In small things, Liberty; 

In all things, Charity. 



NEWTON CENTRE WOMAN'S CLUB; 
President, Mrs. F. E. Anderson. 

In January, 1887, Charles Ward Post, 
G. A. R., invited all Newton Centre ladies 
interested in the relief of disabled veterans 
and their families, to meet on the after- 
noon of January 11, in the chapel of the 
Methodist church. At that meeting a 
board of five officers and a committee of 
twenty-one ladies representing the four 
churches in the village were chosen to 
co-operate with similar organizations in 
other wards of the city in the management 
of a "Soldiers' Fair." 

At the close of the fair Mrs. Charles 
Grout, the vice-president of the Newton 
Centre table, expressed regret that the 
pleasant meetings of the Ward 6 com- 
mittee would be no longer held, and pro- 
posed that this committee, with its officers, 
form a permanent association. The sug- 
gestion met with a hearty response. Mrs. 
Grout was requested to prepare a consti- 
tution, which at a meeting held March 
25, 1887, was presented and adopted, a 
name was selected,- and the same officers 
who had served in the fair committee 
were chosen to the same positions in the 
club. The name first chosen was the 
Ladies' Union, but in 1888 the present 
name was adopted. The membership was 
26 the first year. In February, 1888, the 
membership was doubled, each original 
member inviting a new one. The objects 
of the club were the same as now, aid in 
any worthy or charitable cause, mutual im- 
provement in literary, artistic, and educa- 
tional interests, and the promotion of 
social intercourse. In these early days 



130 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON 



the meetings were held in the homes of its 
members. Since the building of Bray 
Hall, the small hall has been the regular 
place of meeting. 

In 1889 the club held a fair in aid of a 
Newton Centre object, the playground. 
It was called the "Festival of Days," and 
was opened by the Governor of the Com- 
monwealth and other distinguished per- 
sons. The fair was a success, and 
$2550.73 were raised and paid over toward 
the purchase and adornment of a park 
and playground in the heart of Newton 
Centre. 

In November, 1892, another fair, called 
a "Kalendar Fest," was held. By this 
means $2241.90 were raised and dis- 
tributed among Newton charities. 

In 1895 the fee was raised from $1.50 
to $3. 

On the ninth of April, 1901, the first 
vacation school committee was formed, 
since which time the club has maintained 
a school for several weeks every summer. 
The necessary equipment has been fur- 
nished by the club, and the funds required 
have been contributed by the club aug- 
mented by individual contributions from 
generous citizens or by occasional enter- 
tainments. 

Among the speakers whose presence 
has been an honor to the club are such 
women as Julia \\'ard Howe, ^lar)- Liver- 
more, Lady Henry Somerset, Miss Irwin, 
Dean of Radcliffe, President Hazard, 
President WooUey, Miss Heloise E. Hersey, 
Mrs. Margaret Deland, and Mrs. Lucia 
True Ames Mead. Among the men of 
note are President Eliot of Harvard Uni- 
versity, Charles Carleton Coffin, Booker 
Washington, Dr. Richard Burton of the 
University of Minnesota, Rev. Samuel M. 
Crothers, Prof. F. C. de Sumichrast, and 
Rabbi Fleischer. 

In 1905 a change in the policy of the 
club was adopted, in the hope of arousing 
interest among its members and increasing 
its efficiency and scope. Class work was 
introduced. Since that time there have 
been classes in Art, French, Bird Study, 
Physical Culture, Shakespeare, Metal-work, 
and Art Needlework, some of w-hich have 
been free to club members. 

For several years occasional club teas 
following a monthly meeting have been a 
pleasant feature of club life. 

Delightful as has ever been the literary 



and social life of the club, no record would 
be complete that failed to show to some 
extent the breadth of the charitable, educa- 
tional, and philanthropic interests of this 
organization. Including the $157 raised 
by the Cycle of Time toward the Kitchen 
Fund, the Newton Hospital has received 
$1182. To the Pomroy Home has been 
given $525, the Associated Charities $500. 
To other charitable or philanthropic objects 
outside of Newton, previous to 1899, the 
club contributed over $600. During the 
last nine years over $1750 have been 
contributed to various good objects; of 
this the vacation school has received over 
$750. 

The year 1906-1907 closes with a mem- 
bership of 312. 



NEWTON LADIES' HOME CIRCLE; 
President, Mrs. C. H. Stacy. 

Early in the fall of 1888 a few ladies 
from the different wards of Newton (mem- 
bers of the disbanded Charles Ward 
Woman's Relief Corps) met to consider 
forming a society for benevolent and social 
purposes. The society was formed, and 
officers were chosen, the meetings to be 
held twice each month. Members pledged 
themselves to work diligently, not only for 
poor soldiers, but for any deserving poor in 
Newton. A relief fund was started by the 
payment of a small fee, by each member, at 
every meeting. A committee of two from 
each ward was appointed to report upon 
cases of need. The name Home Circle 
was adopted, but was afterward changed 
to Newton Ladies' Home Circle. . A gift of 
fifty dollars was received, from a friend who 
withheld her name. 

Such was the small beginning of an 
organization which now accomplishes much 
work, both in Newton and beyond the 
city limits, under most carefully organized 
methods. Many individuals and families 
have been comforted and assisted through 
sorrow and suffering. In 1890 the Ladies' 
Home Circle furnished a bed in the Little 
Wanderers' Home, Boston. A little later 
one of the best rooms in the Soldiers' 
Home, Chelsea, was furnished, and in 
1892 a room in the Newton Hospital. All 
these rooms are maintained by the circle. 
Other good works have been and are being 
accomplished constantly by this society. 
Large numbers of sheets, pillow-cases, 



THE NEWTON FEDERATION OF WOMEN'S (T.URS 



131 



and garments have been made and wisely 
distributed. More than a thousand aprons 
have been made and sold, as a source of 
income. Money for the good work has 
been raised by means of cake and food 
sales, a rummage sale, whist parties, lect- 
ures, concerts, and in many other ways. 
Thousands of dollars have been raised 
and wisely dispensed. Besides the charities 
above mentioned, the Floating Hospital, 
Newton Hospital kitchen. Boys' Club at 
Nonantum, Girls' Club at Nonantum, 
and Pomroy Home have received gen- 
erous gifts. Meetings of the circle are held 
at the Pomroy Home, Newton. 

The present officers are: Mrs. C. H. 
Stacy, President; Mrs. H. W. Crafts, 
ist Vice-President; Mrs. Jacob Childs, 2nd 
Vice-President; Mrs. \\. F. Hadlock, Re- 
cording Secretary; !Mrs. Bertram D. Childs, 
Corresponding Secretary; Mrs. E. Jo.se- 
phine Kimball, Treasurer; Mrs. H. H. 
Hunt, Auditor. 

The following named ladies have serx'ed 
the club as presidents: IMrs. Wm. R. 
Dimond, Newton Lower Falls; Mrs. Wm. 
Lodge, Newtonville; Mrs. G. M. Fiske, 
Aubumdale; Mrs. C. M. Kimball, West 
Newton; Mrs. Wm. Pierson, Newton; Mrs. 
Richard Anders, West Newton; Mrs. S. 
A. Langley, West Newton; Mrs. F. W. 
Jones, Aubumdale; Mrs. W. F. Hadlock, 
Aubumdale; Mrs. C. H. Stacy, \\'est New- 
ton. 



AUBURNDALE REVIEW CLUB; 
President, Mrs. Vine D. Baldwin. 

In October, 1891, a society was formed 
to "be known as The Review Club of 
Aubumdale, its object to be the promotion 
of intellectual improvement and social 
intercourse." The club met weekly during 
the first two years, but since then the meet- 
ings have been held fortnightly, from the 
first Tuesday in October to April, inclu- 
sive; the last being the annual meeting. 
The meetings are held in the homes of 
members, excepting the lectures, which are 
usually given in the Congregational chapel 
in order that others may also receive 
benefit and pleasure from them. 

The annual fee is two dollars and the 
membership is limited to forty. With 
two exceptions the club has had a full 
membership each year. Twelve of the 



original forty are still in the club, and eight 
have "gone before." 

Although it is a literary club, some chari- 
table work has been done; and pictures 
have been given to the Aubumdale schools. 
A gentleman's night has been given each 
year with some pleasing entertainment. 

During its life of si.xteen years the club 
has devoted seven to the study of history, 
French, English, German, and American. 
Six years have been given to English lit- 
erature, including two on Shakespeare and 
two on Browning. Two winters have been 
spent on travel abroad, and now the mem- 
bers are giving two years to the study of 
"Great Masters in Art." The members of 
the Review Club are all busy women, most 
of them housekeepers and home-makers, 
yet each year the work assigned has been 
done. Is any further justification for its 
existence needed? 

Some of the men and women who have 
addressed the Review Club are — Abba 
Gould Woolson; Henry Austin Clapp; 
I\Ir. Edwin D. Mead; Mr. Bridgman; 
Louise M. Hodgkins; May Alden Ward; 
Mrs. Charhon Black; J. H. L. Harbour; 
]\Iarion Craig Wentworth. 



SHAKESPEARE CLUB, NEWTON 

HIGHLANDS; 
President, Mrs. William :M. :Mick. 

Eleven ladies met December 4, 1891, and 
organized the Newton Highlands Shake- 
speare Club. Two of the number are 
members of the club at the present time, 
Mrs. A. L. Pratt and Mrs. S. L. Eaton; 
the latter was president of the club until 
1904. Airs. R. R. Gilbert was then elected 
to the office, which she held for two vears, 
when Mrs. W. M. Mick succeeded her. 
The officers consist of the president, 
vice-president, secretary, treasurer, and 
auditor. The work for each year is 
planned by an executive committee of three. 

The club has always aimed to do sys- 
tematic study. Four plays have usually 
been read each year, the more solid ones 
in the winter months, with perhaps a 
comedy to finish the year. The club voted 
in 1904 to pursue its study according to 
the plan laid down by Professor Dowden, 
thinking it might be a more satisfactory 
way of studying. 



132 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON 



It has always been the custom of the 
club to have each member give a carefully 
selected quotation from the study of the 
afternoon. Each member is appointed 
to have charge of some special meeting, 
and to give a quiz, which brings out vari- 
ous answers and unexpected debates. We 
have had most interesting and carefully 
prepared debates on the question of Ham- 
let's sanity and whether Macbeth or Lady 
Macbeth was the instigator of the crime 
against the king. 

In order to get a clearer interpretation 
of the plays, the club has been to see some 
of the most noted actors, — Julia Marlowe, 
Irving, Terry, and Mansfield. The club 
has also been entertained and instructed 
by various lectures. The first lecture was 
given in the Newton Highlands Club 
House, December 3, 1893, by Dr. Reuen 
Thomas, of Brookline, on the women of 
Shakespeare. We have heard most profit- 
able lectures from Dr. Hornbrooke, Mrs. 
Mitchell, Rev. M. C. A\Tes, and a few weeks 
ago Dr. Alfred H. Brown, of Newton 
Centre, gave us a lecture of unusual interest 
on "Macbeth." 

The club is not confined strictly to the 
study of Shakespeare, as we have been 
entertained by one of our honorary mem- 
bers, Mrs. E. J. E. Thorpe, by readings 
from Robert Browning. 

The club makes annual visits to different 
places of historical interest. 



WABAN WOM.A.N'S CLUB; 
President, Mrs. J. H. Pillseury. 

In the winter of 1896 less than a dozen 
ladies living in Waban, feeling the need 
of keeping abreast of the times, organized 
the Waban Woman's Club. Mrs. William 
Gould was the first president. The meet- 
ings were held fortnightly at the homes of 
the ladies, and for the first year the fee 
was only twenty-five cents. The meetings 
were delightfully informal and social in 
character, owing to the small number of 
women. The members prepared papers 
on such abstruse subjects as philanthropy, 
sociology, literature, art, and archaeology. 
An informal and familiar discussion usually 
followed these papers, and frequently tea 
was served. 

Mrs. Charles Fish was the president the 



second year, and the membership increased 
to twenty-two. "The Cathedrals of Eng- 
land" was the subject taken up by the 
members, and a half-hour of each session 
was devoted to a discussion of current 
events. 

Mrs. George Clark was the third presi- 
dent, and this year the fee was increased 
to one dollar. By the year 1899 the mem- 
bership had increased to forty-six, and 
under the administration of Mrs. W. C. 
Strong as president, the club joined the 
Newton City Federation of Women's Clubs 
and also the State Federation. As the club 
increased its membership, the meetings 
naturally became more formal and parlia- 
mentary in character; less work was done 
by the members, and lecturers were engaged 
for some of the meetings. This necessitated 
additional funds, and the membership fee 
was again increased, to two dollars. 

Mrs. D. T. Baker served the club most 
efficiently as president for the two suc- 
ceeding years. She was followed by 
Mrs. Frank Miller, who also held the office 
two years. It was while she was president 
that the effort was made to furnish the 
Roger Wolcott school building with works 
of art. Already more than two hundred 
dollars have been raised for this purpose. 
Mr. and Mrs. Pietro Isola, of Waban, 
have most intelligently expended this 
money for the club, and the result is that 
the walls of the rooms of the school build- 
ing are hung with choice photographs and 
reproductions, in plaster, from the old 
masters and some of the more modern 
schools, which have been and ever will be 
a source of inspiration and uplift to the 
children of Waban. 

Mrs. Isola held the office of president 
for the next two years. During her 
regime the club began the custom, which 
has been kept up each year since, of in- 
viting the teachers of the Roger Wolcott 
School to all their meetings. 

The club has had from the beginning 
an annual gentlemen's night, and during 
Mrs. Isola's presidency, one afternoon in 
April was devoted to the children of Waban. 
All the children of the village were invited 
as the guests of the club, and the entertain- 
ment was planned especially for them. 
This has now become a regular feature of 
the club's yearly program. 

For the last two years ^Irs. J. H. Pillsbury 
has been the club president. The mem- 



THE NEWTON FEDERATION OF WOMEN'S CLUBS 



133 



bership is now ahinit sixty-five, and the 
club fee has iieen raised to tliree dollars. 



THE PIERIAN CLUB OF NEWTON 
UPPER FALLS; 

President, Mrs. F. A. Thompson. 

The Pierian Club was organized in 1896 
with a membership of thirteen. Our pres- 
ent membership is twenty-two. In 1897 
we joined the Newton Federation. We 
have been a study club from the beginning, 
deriving much benefit from our essays, and 
with occasional lectures by good speakers, 
together with sociables and musicals inter- 
spersed, we have passed many pleasant 
winters. Some of the subjects which we 
have studied have been the Boston Public 
Library, places of intcnsl and poets of 
New England, history of llic United States, 
English history, also the literary characters 
of the United States and England. We 
have travelled through India, Russia, and 
Japan. This year we have taken an en- 
tirely dift'erent field and have studied the 
ocean. This subject we have found ex- 
ceedingly interesting. Next year we are to 
study English queens and literature of the 
age. 

Socially we have had gentlemen's nights 
each winter. We have given an entertain- 
ment at the Stone Home for a number of 
seasons, given receptions to the teachers of 
the Ralph Waldo Emerson School, and a 
story-telling rciital for the children. 

In the way of philanthropy, according to 
our numbers, we feel that we have accom- 
plished much. The club has given $10 
to the Boston Floating Hospital, $10 to the 
Wellesley Convalescents' Home, $20 to 
found the Penny Savings system (and here 
it may be said that the school children of 
Upper Falls have deposited more and drawn 
out less money than those of any other part 
of Newton). We have given $65 toward 
the new Domestic Department of the 
Newton Hospital, $100 for a frieze in the 
Ralph Waldo Emerson School, and $50 
toward repairing Wade School hall. 

We have gi\-en four public entertainments 
for the purpose of raising funds. Each 
summer an outing has been enjoyed by the 
members. 

Interest has been manifested in woman 
suffrage, nearly all of our members being 
registered voters. 



NEWTON MOTHERS' CLUB; 
President, Mrs. Edward C. Hinckley. 

The Newton Mothers' Club was formed 
under the inspiration of a talk given by 
Mrs. Schoft", President of the National 
Congress of Mothers, on February 17, 
1904, at Mrs. H. H. Carter's in Newton- 
ville. To hear Mrs. Schoff, a hearty in- 
vitation had been extended to all the young 
mothers who might be interested in the 
work; and the response was so enthusiastic 
that it was decided to form an auxiliary 
club of the National Congress of Mothers, 
called the Xcwtoii Mothers' Club, with 
a memlxTship limited to thirty. Officers 
were appointed and a committee chosen to 
draw up a constitution. 

Perhaps the objects of the club could 
be best given by quoting from the consti- 
tution: (i) "To promote the education 
of women in the wise care of children; 
(2) To stimulate active interest in all 
that pertains to the best development 
of the physical, mental, and spiritual 
nature of the child; (3) To inculcate a 
higher conception of parenthood and secure 
a more intelligent co-operation between 
fathers and mothers in the training and 
miiiiagi-ment of their children; (4) To 
uplift and improve the c(jndition of mother- 
hood in all ranks of life." 

The club meetings are held on the first 
Monday of each month from October to 
June inclusive, and some topic of interest 
to mothers is presented: For the first 
two years the addresses were made by an 
invited, or paid, speaker; and twice 
loan papers from the National Congress 
have been read and discussed. 

This third year the experiment was 
tried of devoting a meeting to the presenta- 
tion and discussion of some subject of 
especial interest to the club, such as chil 
dren's books, discipline of children, etc.; 
and having one member lead in the presenta- 
tion, and all join in the discussion. 

This has been so successful in giving 
the members a more personal and individual 
interest in the club work that it is hoped 
to extend this phase of the work in the 
future. 

Besides its regular program, the club 
has tried to widen its scope of usefulness 
by helping some worthy cause of especial 
interest to mothers. In 1906, the club, 
with the very efficient assistance of Mr. 
Anderson, then general manager of the 



134 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON 



Floating Hospital, gave an entertainment 
at the home of one of the members and 
succeeded in raising by subscription the 
sum of $283 to endow a bed on the new 
hospital ship. 

This current year, the club has interested 
itself in the Nonantum Day Nursery, and 
has contributed money and clothing toward 
its support. 

In May, 1905, the club joined the 



Newton Federation of Women's Clubs, 
having representatives on the various Fed- 
eration committees. It also belongs to 
the National Congress of Mothers. 

To sum up, the work of the club is two- 
fold: to help our own children by the 
added wisdom and guidance we can gain; 
and to help the children of the less fortunate 
in leading healthy physical, mental, and 
moral lives. 



FROM 



LEAVES 
NEWTON PORTFOLIOS 



SOME REMINISCENCES OF THE 
OLD ELMS 



BY EMMA CLAFLIN ELLIS 



IT was in the spring of 1854 that the 
estate hitherto known as the Fuller 
farm, and later the General Hull estate, 
was bought by Mr. Claflin, who reared 
another home on the foundations of the 
one 

"Built in the old colonial day, 
When men lived in a grander way, 
With ampler hospitality." 

This house, which had been removed 
ten years before to the corner of Walnut 
and Austin Streets, was regretted because 
of its historic associations, and the charm 
of its interior, yet as the years went by, the 
comfort of the new house, and its con- 
venience for the large and varied family 
who occupied it, reconciled its residents to 
the loss of the original house. 

The new owner brought to the old place 
youth, enthusiasm, courage, patriotism, a 
deep-rooted love for humanity, and a ten- 
der and consistent religious life. He was 
a lover of books, and a rapid, but careful 
reader of history, political economy, travel, 
etc., caring little for fiction. He kept the 
library table well supplied with the best 
periodicals of the day, — Blackwood's, the 
'Lon&on Spectator, several New York dailies, 
and of course Putnam's (the first Putnam's), 
and later the Atlantic and Harper's. It 
was a joy to mouse among them. 

After the comfort of his own familv, the 
master of the house desired that his home 
should give pleasure to aJl in its immediate 
neighborhood, and welcomed to his table 
men of var_ying creeds, both in pohtics and 
in religion. The social life of the day was 
simple, but very delightful. There were 
no clubs, no churches, no school-houses 
even, on this side of the track. 

The house on Hull Street, where iMr. 



Ross now hves, was owned by Mr. Blake, 
a retired East India merchant of scholarly 
tastes, who had travelled much. The house 
then was but a story and a half, but it was 
a little museum, filled with rare carvings in 
ivory, and teakwood, and much choice 
lacquer, when these articles were not to be 
had in the shops, but only brought home 
in the ships of the owners, or were the 
gifts of friends. The grounds were adorned 
with trees of great variety, including the 
flowering cherry of Japan and peaches so 
large and luscious that no one of this 
generation has seen the like. 

South of The Old Elms was the Harris 
estate; traces of its fine lawn, where were 
tethered beautiful cattle of foreign breeds,- 
can still be seen. Across Walnut Street, 
in the house now owned by Mrs. George 
Kimball, lived Miss Priscilla Frothingham, 
of the noted Boston family. She was a 
gentlewoman of the old school, tall and 
dignified, her conversation spirited, but ele- 
gant. At the corner of Mill Street stood 
the old mill and the mill-house, the latter 
transformed into the attractive house now 
owned by Mr. Wilkie. Opposite Elm 
Road, which was then the entrance to the 
estate, stood as now the house of Madame 
Pulsifer, whom the young people at The 
Old Elms loved as a relative, and called 
" the little mother," for her sweet soul and 
dainty ways. Between her house and the 
mill was the house of her father, Mr. 
Trowbridge, with its picturesque roof slop- 
ing almost to the ground, and shadowed 
by an immense elm. 

Here I pause to speak of the pleasure 
given by the elder Mr. Trowbridge to the 
family at The Old Elms. In his youth he 
was gifted, as were his sons later, with a 



SOME REMINISCENCES OF THE OLD ELMS 



137 



fine voice, and while he must have been 
Hearing eighty when I knew him, he would 
sing the old songs and hymns in a fine high 
falsetto. The tune most often demanded 



"Fly like a youthful hart or roe 
Over the hills where spices grow," — 

the movement hke an old fugue. 

These were all the houses to the south 
and east of The Old Elms; a beautiful 
stretch of woodland bordered the quiet, 
narrow road leading to Homer Street, when 
boulevards were not. To the north were 
five houses on the left, one occupied by the 
father of Mrs. Tainter, Mr. Cook, who is 
remembered as making the brides in the 
'So's happy with his gifts of cut glass, their 
own names engraved thereon. Of the 
houses on the right, but one remains, now 
occupied by Dr. Taft. At that period, a 
small private school was taught there, for 
the benefit of vouivj; (hildrcn. The older 
boys and girl^'wcnt t.. Mr. AllcnV -chunl 
at West Ncwtun, or to La?ell at Auburn- 
dale. 

The family at The Old Elms attended 
church at Newton Centre, attracted thither, 
on coming to Newtonville, by the quiet 
drive, free from any sounds except the 
songs of the birds in summer, and the 
fierce whistling gales in winter. The family 
were so numerous that three carriages were 
often needed, but the gentlemen of the 
household enjoyed driving themselves, and 
the necessity for this settled the question 
of the attendance of men at church. 

At this time a small society of Baptists 
held a service in the only hall in the village, 
and used a litde pond by the Hull Street 
gate, on the estate of The Old Elms, for 
the services of baptism by immersion. 
The scene was most interesting. This 
miniature lake no longer exists, the water 
having been taken from it by the city when 
Bullough's Pond was confined to the east 
side of the street, instead of making a lake 
on both sides, — as in the days now de- 
scribed. 

When The Old Elms was acquired, there 
still remained on its thirty acres one hun- 
dred and fifty elms, while some old poplars 
were standing along the front driveway, 
to mark, as elsewhere in Massachusetts, 
the site of an old home, and a belt of tall 
pointed firs were close about the house. 
As they grew decrepit and fell, the new 



owner replaced them with Norway spruces. 
These lined the avenue on both sides from 
the front door to the original entrance on 
Walnut Street, making grateful shade in 
summer, and serving as a wind-break in 
winter. They were taken down in 1895- 
The masses of " pale syringa which scented 
the air" through the long summer hours,, 
the lilac hedge on the south side leading to 
the Hull Street gate, the apple orchard 
by the brook, and one old seckel pear-tree 
near the north door, are inheritances from 
General Hull. A gnarled chestnut-tree still 
stands, one of a pair on the knoll by Hull 
Street, that were said to be a part of the 
"forest primeval." 

Just under this knoll was a little summer 
house, or wigwam, with a thatched roof, 
and windows of glass of many colors. It 
had been a trysting place for many lovers, 
who enjoyed its silence and freedom from 
irritatini; interruptions. Close bv, had been 
an ex.avMlion in General llulp; time, but 
it pro\-e(l un>i,ij;htly later, and the gardener 
buggested it might be made beautiful as a 
place for ferns and wild natural growths. 
To this end many large stumps were 
brought, and logs, with rustic work for 
seats. It was a pretty nook, with a rare 
peculiarity, — the dead wood at nightfall 
was said to give out a delicate phosphores- 
cence most fascinating to behold. This 
always required two people to see; they 
must be young, and of opposite sexes. I 
have never heard that any lone man or 
woman could disco\er it, but the pairs of 
young people coming in laic to high tea 
often gave it as an e.xcuse. This summer 
house and stumpery were intact undl 1898, 
when they were burned by the boys playing 
on the grounds. 

Later a greenhouse was built, a grapery 
added, with a separate house for ferns 
that contained a hundred and fifty varieties. 
On the north side of this was a bowling 
alley; that still stands in its decadence, 
but even in its ruins it has been of use to the 
younger boys, on the stormy days when a 
strenuous s])ort was in demand. As the 
churches increased, the ministers of the 
different denominations enjoyed the vigor- 
ous exercise of the game, before golf took 
them farther afield. 

"The New Church" (Swedenborgian) 
was one of the first to be started in Newton- 
ville. Its first minister, the Rev. Mr. 
Worcester, was among the early friends who 



138 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON 



■came to The Old Elms. He had the most 
saintly face I have ever looked upon in the 
pulpit, a living type of Saint John, the be- 
loved disciple, — the external beauty being 
-a true witness to the spirit within. The 
inhabitants of the village were so few in 
those pleasant days, the ministers could be 
friends and neighbors, as well as pastors, 
something difficult now that each church 
has more work than it is possible for any one 
man to do; and this dear earthly friendship 
lasted to the end, its gentle sympathy and 
unforgetting kindness always to be trusted 
in any vicissitude of life. 

Speaking of Mr. Worcester recalls an 
afternoon when the "Hampton Singers" 
came to The Old Elms to give added pleas- 
ure to a group of friends who had gathered 
■ — as was the custom every summer — to see 
the boys from the Pine Farm School, 
and the girls of the Pomroy Home, who 
were having a fete there. When the 
Hampton students had finished their songs, 
jMr. Worcester asked if they would be will- 
ing to dance for the guests. They hesi- 
tated, and it was discovered that tliey felt 
some religious scruples about dancing, 
after they had entered upon their student 
life. However, finding these Northern 
friends had never seen their dances, they 
consented. Taking their positions on the 
lawn, as in a square dance, two sides 
•danced to the singing of the opposite sides, 
then pausing, the singers took up the 
dance to the music of the other sides. When 
they ceased, Mr. Worcester said, "I have 
often heard of the poetry of motion, but this 
is the first time I have seen it." 

Now changes began to come to The Old 
Elms, for the growth of the town, then as 
now, demanded more schools, and on March 
7, 1859, "A resolution was adopted rec- 
ommending the establishment of a pure 
High-school to be located in Newtonville, on 
a lot of land next to the entrance of Mr. 
Claflin's grounds, being a part of his estate 
on Walnut Street." This was the first 
loss to the estate. No one could foresee 
that the needs and demands of this new 
school would increase until it was necessary, 
or expedient, to open a street to Lowell 
Avenue, through what had been the quiet 
shaded driveway. The heavy row of 
Norway spruces had proved a screen be- 
tween the house and the school buildings, 
but their loss, and the e.xtension of the school 
buildings, destroyed the rural quiet and 



privacy of the estate, and better prepared it, 
perhaps, for the public park it is to become. 

Soon the mutterings of the civil war 
were beginning to be distinctly heard, and 
men in public life came often to the house 
for discussion of the terrible problem. 
Their anxious faces and low voices, as they 
sat around the fire in the library, can never 
be forgotten. No one doubted the outcome, 
but the thought of the suffering that must 
precede it caused them to groan aloud, 
and to ask in terror if the new leaders could 
bring the country through such terrible 
disaster. The master of the house re- 
membered well the day when Mr. Sumner 
walked the floor, speaking of Lincoln, in 
the early days of his administration, and 
ended with the words, "He cannot do it, 
I tell you he cannot do it." Henry Wilson, 
afterward Vice-President, was a constant 
visitor, always most welcome. Mr. Dawes 
— later, Mr. Sumner's successor — was an- 
other guest, dear and valued, intensely in 
earnest, but like Lincoln never losing his 
sense of humor. General Banks came 
often with his wife, from liis home in 
Waltham. Both husband and wife were 
of such personal presence that one did not 
wonder at the admiration they excited in 
the youthful Prince of Wales, now King 
Edward. At the ball given for him Mrs. 
Banks was his partner for the first dance, 
and truly she looked regal in her gown of 
rich purple, overlaid with golden wheat. 

The beginning of the war period found 
the master of the house the President of 
the Senate. Governor Andrew, the be- 
loved, was the chief executive. That the 
men of Newton might come into closer 
contact with him, he was invited with the 
members of the Legislature for an evening 
reception, probably the first large reception 
given at The Old Elms. " 

The house had always a "Prophet's 
Chamber." One of its earliest occupants 
was Professor Park of Andover, the noted 
theologian and brilliant wit. It was a 
delightful Sunday when he e.xchanged with 
Mr. Furber, then the minister of the family, 
and passed the nights at The Old Elms. 
He told with a laugh that he received sev- 
enty dollars for writing a "Life of Aaron 
Burr," while Mrs. Stowe, his friend, re- 
ceived ten thousand for a tale in which 
Aaron Burr was a prominent character. 

Following him was Dr. Kirk of Mount 
Vernon Church in Boston, and the revered 



SOME re:\iiniscences of the ^old elms 



139 



Bishop Foster. of the ^lethodist church, — 
who said one day, in reply to a question 
whether he could understand all the prob- 
lems of life, "No. I am obliged often to 
go away and fall upon my knees, and say, 
O Lord, you perplex me very much indeed." 

Dr. Manning, of the Old South, the 
father-in-law and predecessor of Dr. Gor- 
don, was a frequent guest in the summer. 
His prayers in the morning were enough of 
heaven to make any one wish to set forth 
towards the celestial city. How gentle he 
was, how strong, how wise in advice, or, 
better still, in withholding advice that could 
not be borne. We owed him much. 

Dr. Fairbairn, of Oxford, who came 
across the water to give his great course of 
lectures on the religions of the East, spent 
some days at The Old Elms. No more 
beautiful memory of him remains than that 
of a little evening service held in the twilight, 
in the gardener's cottage, for the benefit of 
some neighbors, who seldom went to church, 
but were overjoyed to listen to a few words 
from a brother Scotchman, who forgot his 
profound learning for the moment, to re- 
mind them of the simple truths they all 
understood. Later, when he returned to 
the large house, he told the group there of 
his friendship with Carlyle, and said the 
reading of "Sartor Resartus" had been for 
him the turning-point of his life, as a young 
man; that he spent hours on the street in 
front of the house where Carlyle lived, 
awaiting the chance of a glimpse of his hero. 

The same summer brought that rare 
soul, Henry Drummond, for a brief visit. 
His passion for Niagara, he said, was so 
great that he w-ent three times to visit the 
wonderful falls during his short time in this 
country. He also told us that he had read 
every word he could find about Henry Ward 
Beecher, and wanted more by word of 
mouth. 

Mr. Beecher spent many days in this 
guest chamber, enjoying a taste of leisure 
in his overwhelmingly busy life. Phillips 
Brooks called him the greatest preacher 
that Protestantism had ever produced, and 
Spurgeon spoke of him as the " Shakspere 
of the pulpit"; but at The Old Elms he 
was the friend and guest of all, from the 
master and mistress down to the smallest 
child. He played croquet with the same 
skill and adroitness that he used in argu- 
ment, bringing his own mallet with him in 
his trunk, lest a new one of different weight 



should impair the careful shots he delighted 
to send. But most of all he enjoyed a few 
days with his sister, Mrs. Stowe, whom he 
loved so tenderly, and the elder sister, Mrs. 
Perkins, who had been like a mother to 
him in his childhood. He wrote to a friend, 
"It is one of my dreams that I shall by 
and by be cast upon some sunny bank 
where I can see Mary Perkins and Hattie 
Stowe every day, with nothing on my mind, 
and time enough to bud and blossom on 
every side." 

A full account of the Garden Party in 
honor of Mrs. Stowe, that was given by 
Houghton, Mifflin & Co. on her seventieth 
birthday, is to be found in the Atlantic of 
August, 1882. One of the guests who was 
stajing at The Old Elms at this time was 
Mrs. Frances Hodgson Burnett, who wrote 
a part of her story, " Through One Admin- 
istration," under its roof. Another most 
delightful friend was Miss Sarah Orne 
Jewett, of whose stories the London Spec- 
tator said, " If American girls write like this, 
let more of them wTite." 

jMrs. Elizabeth Phelps Ward came often, 
to consult the master of the house on her 
many projects to benefit the human race, 
and the animal as well; for like George 
Macdonald, she loves the four-footed 
friends enough to say "who" in speak- 
ing of them, and believes in the possibility 
that we may meet them when we have 
"crossed the bar." 

The last guests of national fame at The 
Old Elms were Senator Hoar and Gen. 
O. O. Howard. The former came often 
to Newton to visit the birthplace, on Wa- 
verley Avenue, of his ancestor Roger Sher- 
man, and then to take luncheon with the 
master of the Old Elms. The two men 
entered Congress the same year; the friend- 
ship there formed never waned, and the 
spirited letters from Washington brought 
exceeding pleasure. General Howard hap- 
pily still fives and works, at Lincoln Uni- 
versity, for the freedmen and the "poor 
mountain whites" whom Lincoln com- 
faiitted to his care, for their fidefity to the 
Union. On his last visit he read to the 
little group Whittier's poem entitled "How- 
ard at Atlanta." His melodious voice 
and empty sleeve made the reading very 
pathetic. 

"We may build more splendid habitations, 
But we cannot buy with gold the old associa- 
tions." 



A DISTINGUISHED HOME 



BY ELIZABETH STUART PHELPS 



^1~>HE great photographer, time, de- 
I velops the films of life according to 
his own caprice: — rejecting some, 
blurring some, blotting this, selecting that, 
and carefully retouching the valuable. 
Among all my memories of the dis- 
tinguished home which Newton honors 
itself in the effort to preserve, I find 
that three present themselves, to the exclu- 
sion — who knows whv? — of nianv others. 



It is a June da 
Governor Claflin's 



if I am right, and 
Liutiful grounds are 




MRS. ELIZABETH ,STU.\RT PHELPS \\-AKD 

thrown open to a group of guests, memor- 
able even among the wise and the brilliant 
who have received his eminent hos- 
pitality. It is the birthday of the most 
famous woman in America. Harriet 
Beecher Stowe is seventy years old. We 
are there to do her honor, "the great and 
the small," of her own high calling. Whit- 
tier is there, I think; Dr. Holmes is there, 
I know; Mrs. Frances Hodgson Burnett 
in her youthful, fashionable dress. I 
think the sleeves were puffed, and that 
there was a species of Dolly Varden pattern 
about her, somewhere. I feel a little ex- 
tinguished in my jjlain black gown, for 



I am still young, and not self-confident, 
and alas, I have pledged myself to fate 
and to Mrs. Claflin that I will read a poem. 
Quaking in e\ery nerve and muscle, I 
cast about for >ome way of escape from this 
frightful privilege. My eye falls upon Mr. 
Aldrich; — but no — that would not do. I 
would throw myself upon the mercy of my 
dear friend Mr. Whittier, but that I am 
convinced he would rather the lirook that 
babbles through the Old Elms should open 
a ad swallow him down. 

In my distress an angel meets me, a 
small angel according to "the measure of 
the stature of a man," a large one by the 
imperious dimensions of the intellect. I 
find myself on the arm of Oliver Wendell 
Holmes, and know that I am safe. To my 
plaintive cry, "Oh, will you read my 
]3oem?" he responds like the gentleman 
that he was. It was not a very good 
[loem to my present thinking, but he 
chivalrously read it with the personal 
respect and the poetic fervor due to much 
Ijetter \'erK'^, ami I sat, if I remember, 
in the audicm v a> if I had nothing to 
do with it, and IJKnikcl God. 

When tlu' agitation ni this incident has 
-iil)>i(lril, I notice for the first time quite 
ciearl\- that Professor Stowe is on the plat- 
form beside his distinguished wife: — the 
old Andover professor with his gray beard 
and keen eyes; he whom I have known on 
Zion's hill since I was a girl. Unfortu- 
nately for my desire to remain unknown 
to fame, the recognition is mutual. The 
professor signals me out, and in a loud 
voice, audible half across the tent, ex- 
claims: "Why, there is !" He 

uses the old Andover name of my girl- 
hood, the "Httle name" of my home and 
my neighbors, and I am dragged upon the 
platform, whether I will or not, to shake 
hands with him and our great guest, his 
wife. Fortunately, I stand with my back 
to the audience; I cannot see the effect of 
this dismal episode. 

For a moment I sigh for the puffed sleeves 
and the .something Dolly Varden of the 
author of "Little Lord Fauntleroy." But 
I creep down from the platform in my black 
gown, and I am fain to believe that its 
sevcrilv ma\' have received me like a dark 



A DISTINGUISHED HOME 



cloud out of the attention of the audience 
— and so am content to play I wasn't there. 

All through the June afternoon, while 
the elect guests come and go, I watch the 
face of our hostess; — strong, sweet, brim- 
ming with sympathetic joy, wearing that 
sensitive anxiety for the success of her 
entertainment, which those who knew her 
best always detected upon the countenance 
of this perfect hostess. It is said that 
a great public speaker always undergoes 
a period of torture when he is first con- 
fronted with his audience, and that his 
feverish distress is the surest sign and 
prophecy of his success. Something of 
the kind was true, I think, of Mrs. Claflin 
in the brilliant social stage on which she 
moved. She cared so much to make peo- 
ple happy, she tried so hard to 
idealize and Christianize society, that 
the art of entertainment took with 
her its highest, because its most 
ennobling form. 

The June day declines — the grass 
blades on the long lawn cease to 
blaze — the shadows of the great elms 
lengthen soberly — the brilliant com- 
pany drifts away. The face of the 
host and hostess, tired and happy, 
shine upon us as we grasp their 
hands. Mrs. Stowe is seventy years 
young, and her birthday party is 
over. She wears her dreamy smile, as 
if she sat apart from us, somehow, in 
spite of it all, and mutely sang in 
some sheltered corner of her soul, — 



"Those mystic words of thine, O sovereign Lord, 
Are all too pure, too deep, too full for me; 
Wear)- with striving, and with longing faint, 
I breathe them back again in prayer to thee." 

Of all the cherished visits that I have 
made at the Old Elms, why should the film 
of such a lonely one follow that thronged 
and brilliant scene? 

It is mid-winter. The brook is frozen; 
the elms are bare to their brown lace. The 
long lawns are death-white with piling 
snow. I come from Andover to see my 
friend, who is broken in health, worn with 
one of the busiest and most useful lives 
in Boston, selecting her deserted home for 
a rest cure, and seeking in it the repose 
which the exactions of Mt. Vernon Street 
can never give. She is there to do nothing, 
but I find her toiling still. Her eager spirit 
knows no relief in idleness, and I entrap 



the exhausted hostess and philanthropist 
busily writing her first little book, with 
whose success I remember she had reason 
to be pleased. 

And now for the last time, being by this 
a citizen of Newton, I drive over with my 
husband on a spring afternoon, beneath 
the long arms of the elms, to the darkened 
but still brave and peaceful home. Only 
the portrait of the charming hostess smiles 
upon us now. The Governor meets us 
cheerfully; but chokes a little as he clasps 
our hands. We all try not to look at her 
pictured face, and we speak of other things 
than those which crowd our hearts. Their 
marriage had been one of the wonderful, 
and the few; and the lonely man had come 




.IRS. W.\HD 8 HOME OX DUDLEY STREET, 
NEWTON CENTRE 

back to their dearest home partly, I think, 
to be near the tomb in which she waited 
for him. He talked of everything except 
his grief. To the last, his intellect was 
strong and vivid. Any man of fifty might 
be proud to converse as Governor Claflin 
did at eighty. His mind ran abreast with 
the politics and with the princi])les of the 
day. He lived in the jiresent to the last 
moment. His honored life embellished 
his conversation as it did his soul. Anec- 
dotes of great men, incidents of great moral 
struggles flashed from his lips like the wit 
or the wisdom of a young man. His strong 
name headed year after year our petition 
for the restriction of vivisection in Massa- 
chusetts, and his deep heart throbbed to this 
unpopular and Christ-like cause. He was 
not too old to abhor cruelty. Life had not 
burned too low in his veins for him to leap 
to the call of the tormented. 



142 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON 



jMany _vears ago I met by accident a 
lady, herself a keen judge of character, who 
used in childhood or girlhood to be a class- 
mate of our dear dead Governor. She 
turned to me with lifted head and luminous 



eyes; "I have known him all my life," 
she said, "and if William Claflin could do 
anything that was not honest, that was not 
right, I should lose my faith in all the world 
of men." 



INDUSTRIAL TRAINING 

BY SARAH LOUISE ARNOLD 



DEAN OF SIMMONS COLLEGE 



THE problem of the common school 
system is a complex problem at 
best. Fathers and mothers who 
are perple.xed when called upon to 
decide what is best for their son or 
daughter will sympathize with the corre- 
sponding perple.xity of the superintendent 
and school committee, who must deter- 
mine the balance and proportion of a course 
of study suited to the needs of children of 
all ages and conditions. The desire of the 
parents is to secure for their children the 
best education w-hich their time and finan- 
cial ability can provide. The aim of the 
school authorities must be to insure to every 
child the utmost privilege which his measure 
of opportunity can afford. It is possible 
for some of our children to complete the 
courses of study provided at the public 
schools and to pursue their studies through 
college and university; from the large 
majority, however, this greater opportunity 
is withheld. The education which is within 
their grasp must comprehend that which 
will best fit them for their work in the 
world in the time which is at their disposal. 
This will never mean that the few years 
of elementary school training can be a 
substitute for the prolonged course of 
study in the school and college. It does 
not mean that a Utile is better than much, 
or that much is equal to more. We shall, 
therefore, have no quarrel with those who 
urge larger benefits and more generous 
training, when we assert that for a large 
number of children industrial training is a 
necessity, and that parents are justified in 
asking for such training. The quarrel 
may perhaps begin when we also urge that 
industrial training of the better sort is an 
important element in any well-balanced 
course of study, and is most needed, per- 
haps, by the boys and girls who go to 
school from homes of prosperous leisure 



in which they feel no necessity of contribut- 
ing to the general welfare by some work of 
their hands. Both of these propositions 
we should consider. 

In discussing industrial training, it is 
well to state at the beginning that the term 
is here intended to designate instruction 
and practice in the processes which secure 
a material product and require the use of 
the hand, — not manual training for the 
sake of general development, but a train- 
ing which may be applied afterward to the 
actual demands of common industries, and 
which will secure for the worker a better 
start and a larger advantage in the choice 
of labor, with some assurance of promotion. 

How is the need of such training made 
evident to us? How is it justifiecl? By 
what means can it be secured ? 

It is evident that a very large number 
of children who leave our common schools 
before completing the course of study ai 
once enter some industry, either to main- 
tain themselves or to assist in the main 
tenance of the family. These young peo- 
ple go to their new labor untaught, so far 
as the demands of the industry are con 
cerned; they also go untrained, so far as 
habits which insure skill are considered 
Their schooling has sharpened their wits 
to some degree; it has opened to them the 
pages of books; it has given them some 
general notion of life outside their imme- 
diate experiences. It may not have con- 
nected in any way with the task which is 
set before them. They may not have 
learned how to judge a piece of work, to 
know whether it is well or ill done. Their 
hands have not been taught to execute the 
demands of the brain. They are neither 
swift nor sure. Their standards are vague 
and indistinct: they seem handless as well 
as headless. If, while emerging from this 
condition, they enter the industrial field, 



IXDUSTRIAL TRAIXIXG 



143 



they must be assured the careful tuition of 
some fellow- worker; but in very few arts 
and crafts is this apprenticeship possible. 
They stumble along without intelligent 
guidance, earn little, and are unable to 
improve except as they learn through bitter 
experience. 

The transition from the study of books 
to the practice of the art or craft is abrupt. 
While the school course is good so far as 
it goes, in these lines it does not go far 
enough. Some provision should be made 
to develop the qualities which are essential 
in industrial activity, and to give enough 
practice in technical arts to assure some de- 
gree of skill, precision, and appreciation 
of workmanship. 

The objection which is immediately 
raised is that the boys and girls who are 
to go to college cannot spare time for this 
sort of training, and that the school has 
no right to provide one course of study for 
one set of children and another course for 
others. The reply is simple. This course 
has already been followed by schools. 
WTierever the Latin school has been es- 
tablished it has, in the early years of the 
child's training, selected such students as 
were sure of the college privilege, brought 
them into separate classes, and prepared 
them for college. The Boston Latin 
School is an example. .\nd in addition, 
we have conceded this principle in the 
differentiation of courses of study in the 
high schools, allowing commercial courses, 
English courses, and Latin courses. In 
the interests of a still larger number of 
students, we have the same right to es- 
tablish the technical high school that Bos- 
ton assumed in establishing the Latin 
School. The principle is the same and 
the need is greater. 

Such an institution attempts to connect 
the training of the schools with the work 
required in life. It makes the earlier 
training effective. It insures greater use- 
fulness for the present generation and 
larger privilege for the generations to come. 

Success in any industrial pursuit, par- 
ticularly in the contribution which the 
ordinar\' workman makes to the manufact- 
ure of any good article, is dependent upon 
fidelity in imitating a good pattern or ex- 
ample (adherence to a standard), precision 
or accuracy in execution, united with speed 
in accomplishment. The first two quali- 
ties make the result secure, and the last 



renders the time of the worker \aluable. 
Union of the three is indisjiensable ; all 
must be assured to the rank and file of 
industrial workers. 

The process by which the quality of ac- 
curacy is developed is the careful study 
of the pattern or example under instruc- 
tion, and continued repetition until both 
accuracy and speed are secured. The 
repetition to be useful must be thoughtful, 
othenvise skill is not developed. Now it 
is evident that in the ordinar\' workshop 
the main result to be secured is material 
product. The shop is organized and con- 
trolled for the purpose of making certain 
things, which, to be profitable, must be 
well made at the least possible e.xpense. 
One element of profit, therefore, is the 
skill of the worker. It is to the advantage 
of the business that one who has learned 
to do any part of the work well should be 
kept in his place, as the substitution of an 
unskilled hand for the trained worker is 
a loss to the business. Therefore, we can 
hardly expect that in any ordinar}- busi- 
ness the untrained worker will be moved 
from place to place for the sake of his own 
development. Rather in the natural life 
of the business, he will be held to one task 
as long as his work is profitable. 

The school, on the other hand, has for 
its object the development of the student, 
and not the completion of a material task. 
If, therefore, the boy who is at work in the 
school shop learns to do one piece of work 
well, he is led on to another and still an- 
other requirement in order that his judg- 
ment and skill may be developed. In the 
school he is taught not only to recognize 
the pattern and to imitate it carefully, with 
accuracy and precision, but he is also en- 
abled to turn his attention to many e.x- 
amples of skill and to emulate in more 
than one direction the attainments of work- 
men who have been praised for their good 
work. As fast as he has won from any 
task the advantage which that particular 
work can render to him, he is confronted 
with another problem which makes still 
further demands upon his wit and skill, 
and so is trained for a wider usefulness. 

It is evident that the school will always 
lack the intense reality of the daily task, 
which is paid for with hard-earned money 
and is relentlessly measured by the market 
value. On the other hand, the task can 
never compete with the school in its sacri- 



144 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON 



fice of the material product to the higher 
interests of the youth to be taught. 

The industrial school, to be of use, must 
include as many of the common processes 
of ordinary industries as may be illus- 
trated under school conditions. It should 
aim to present certain problems of the 
workshop, and to demand obedience to 
accepted principles which are recognized 
in co-ordinate or subordinate service, — 
honesty in execution; painstaking; obedi- 
ence to directions; punctuality in appt)int- 
ments; regard for the interests of others 
who are involved in the work. All these 
must be carefully instilled into the mind 
of the )'oung worker. He should l)e taught 
the importance of the work which is to be 
done, should learn to look with admira- 
tion upon the achievements of others, and 
to be ambitious, not simply to receive 
much for his labor, but to achieve a piece 
of work worth doing. 

A school which aims to accomplish this 
would be a blessing to any community. 
It is particularly desirable in a community 
like ours. A large number of boys and 
girls in our city must depend upon such 
tuition to prepare them for self-mainte- 
nance. Their term of schooling is short, 
their task confronts them in the near fut- 
ure, and they must by some means be 
prepared for it. If the instruction which 
opens to them the printed book can alter- 
nate with the training which makes them 
ready for their inevitable task, they will 
find in that task itself not only greater en- 
joyment, but an increased opportunity 
for usefulness. The joy of doing one's 
work well; the assurance of growing ability 
to do it better and better; recognition of 
power to perform one task after another, 
each succeeding one better than its prede- 
cessor; these go far to make Hfe worth liv- 
ing, and these gifts the industrial or techni- 
cal school may place in the hands of our 
boys and girls. 

We have intentionally written, at this 
point, "our boys and girls," because the 
school to be effective should be adapted 
to both. Many of the girls of the com- 
munity must look forward to self-mainte- 
nance outside the home, and nearly all of 
them will make some contribution to the 
maintenance of the family. They are less 
likely than their brothers to secure ap- 
propriate instruction outside the school, 
and thev need perhaps more than their 



brothers, at the present time, careful guid- 
ance and instruction in the arts which they 
are to practice. An industrial school 
which provides for the boys technical train- 
ing in wood-carving, metal-work, harness- 
making, etc., should give the girls an op- 
portunity in cooking, sewing, millinery, 
household management, drawing, and 
weaving. In many of the classes, the 
same instruction would be given to both 
boys and girls, while some of the arts would 
be distinctly differentiated. 

A word as to the grades in which such 
instruction should be gi\-cn. It has al- 
ready been said that lhi> lr;iiiiiiig is par- 
ticularly necessary iuv hoys imd girls leav- 
ing school before completing the course 
of study. The time for such instruction, 
then, i> before they leave school, to be sure, 
but at the last period to which it can be 
advantageously deferred. Exactly as the 
Latin school allows the differentiation of 
the course of study in the sixth grade, so 
this technical school might allow the in- 
dustrial subjects to be included in the 
grades beyond the sixth, with the regular 
class work. This substitution should be 
made only when it is sure that the years 
of school life are necessarily hmited. After- 
noon classes made up of younger pupils 
may otcupy the shops which in the morn- 
ing are used for the high school students. 
The building can thus serve a double pur- 
pose and be in almost constant use. It 
would be eminently proper and profitable 
to allow evening classes also in the same 
building, for the young men and women 
who have entered upon their duties and 
who recognize the need of further instruc- 
tion to insure a more satisfactory accom- 
plishment of their daily task. In fact, 
instruction in industrial lines to those al- 
ready at work is perhaps our most profit- 
able undertaking. The task itself shows 
the worker his limitation; he turns to his 
lesscms in the hope of overcoming it. From 
his school, enlightened by his study, he 
returns to his task with new interest, and 
finds in it a greater zest and a finer accom- 
plishment. Not until the limitation has 
been removed is the instruction useless. 
This combination adds interest to both 
lesson and task. 

In one of our Western cities an experi- 
ment has been organized which permits 
half-day work in shops and factories and 
half-dav instruction in the school, to stu- 



MEMORIES OF ONE HOME 



145 



dents of suitable age. UndoubUdly both 
work and school gain by this ( c}<.|KiMii(iii 
and alternation. While the schdul in our 
community may not secure this inirtic uiar 
result, it cannot fail to prepare our buys :;iid 
girls for more intelligent servitr in indus- 
trial pursuits and for more rapid advance- 
ment in their chosen tasks. 

One word more as to the advantage 
which all students would dcri\r fmm a 
course of study in which induslrird train- 
ing alternates with acadcnii( studii's. The 
balance and proportion which early con- 
ditions secured for children in New Eng- 
land is rapidly disappearing as conditions 
change. The farms witli their necessity 
for co-o[)erati.in pr()\i(lc lor only a small 
number of children. The lionie requires 
lessand less res|ionsibih'ty .ind ser\-ice from 
its youn,u;er inma(es. Instriu tion and 
training in r,ll nKitlers are toiisidered the 
function of the si hool, and the family is 
rapid!}- w ilh(li-;;\\ ing from its own respon- 
sibility, liitil these duties are re-appor- 
tioned, it will be necessary for the school 
to supjilement the home to a gi-eater de- 
gree than in the past, and partiiularly in 
the opportunity for manual training. We 
have become familiar with tlie principle 



that intellectual work is at its best when 
balanced by |iliysical exercise. We have 
not \et fully le:irncd that that exercise has 
a tiller educational quality when it ends 
in something worth while. In the "Trav- 
eller from Altruria" llowells represents the 
traveller as helping the farmer to get in 
his hay, while his friends swing Indian 
clubs. The theory brought forward by 
the hero is that useful e.xercise profits more 
than exercise for its own sake. No one 
who has studied the problems of education, 
applying to them the philosophy of every- 
day life, can fail to observe that the clear- 
est thinkers are not the men who do noth- 
ing but think. The man of acdon wrestles 
with his task and beats into it the thought 
which dominates his action. Both the 
thought and the work ;ire l)etter because 
he has both wrought and thought. So the 
intellectual task of the ordinary student is 
finer if balanced and measured b\- the ma- 
terial expression, the doing alternating 
with the thinking, or accom|i:in\ing it. 
The principles of manual training have 
made us familiar with this theory; it re- 
mains for industrial tiiuning to show us 
that the thinker is developed by his deed 
as well as liv his thought. 



MEMORIES OF ONE HOME 

BY MRS. NATHANIEL T. ALLEN 



IN looking Ijack over a period of fifty- 
four years in West Newton, fifty-three 
of ihem spent in the s;\me house, it 
is pleasant to thiid< of the noted men 
and women who have sat by i)ur fireside^ 
as it were, and lent to us of their learning 
and wisdom. 

Horace Mann was among the first to 
welcome me to West Newton, Mr. Allen 
having been a member of his family, and 
an ardent admirer and disciple. His 
tall form, large head, and protruding 
forehead made him quite an awe-inspiring 
figure, and yet he could playfully stoop 
to joke with the young Nantucket girl 
and recommend that a tub of water, well 
salted, should be kept at hand, lest she 
pine for her native sea-girt isle. His ami- 
able, gifted wife, daughter of old Dr. Pea- 
body, was very gracious, cultiv.ited, and 
helpful. Her sister. Miss Elizabeth Pea- 
bodv, gave a series of talks to friends, in 



our parlors, on her then new method of 
memorizing historv and geographv, which 
she illustrated with ehai-'ts, and later she 
talked of ••kindergaiten" w,,rk, ,if which 
she was an untiring adxocate and ex- 
pounder. 

Rev. Cyrus Peirce, called "Father 
Peirce," for whom the Peirce School iir West 
Newton was named, was intimately asso- 
ciated with us, first as Principal of the 
Normal School in West Newton, and later 
a.s a,ssoii:;le prinei|Kd with Mr. Allen, in 
his pri\,:ir -,li.ii;l. He was often at our 
house, and alwa_\s held up to us the highest 
ideals; his head bore a striking resem- 
blance to that of Froebel, the founder of 
the kindergarten system. Mrs. Peirce, his 
able co-worker, was a woman of strong 
character and vigorous health, and by 
example and precept supported her hus- 
band's high principles. 

Dr. William A. Alcott, who wrote "The 



146 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON 



House I Live in," one of the earliest books 
on physiology, certiiinly the one that gave 
me my first knowlege of the laws of health, 
lived in Auburndale and came often to the 
house; as did Dr. Dio Lewis, who first 
introduced Swedish gymnastics into our 
country. He was a great enthusiast on 
the subject, and interested all in the exer- 
cises. Those were fine times when, under 
him, the gentlemen and ladies of West 
Newton assembled in the old town hall, 
the basement of what became afterwards 
the city hall, and ran races over the rickety, 
creaking board floors, threw bean bags, 
e.xercised with wands and dumb bells, and 
grew strong. Once after he had been 
lecturing on health, telling the young 
people among other things how injurious 
mince pies were, Mr. Allen invited him to 
dine with us. It so happened that day 
that mince pie was to be my dessert, of 
which he partook, — perhaps to save my 
feelings as hostess. Or perhaps he was 
like our original, celebrated, hydropathic 
physician. Dr. Kittredge, who wrote under 
the name of "Noggs" and was well known 
in the vicinity of Boston; once when 
remonstrated with for eating some rich 
viands set before him, he said, "I am the 
guide post that points the way for you to 
do. I go as I have a mind to." 

Henry Barnard, Commissioner of Edu- 
cation at Washington, came to give Mr. 
Allen an appointment from the govern- 
ment to visit schools in Europe, and he 
afterwards sent his son abroad with us. 
William B. Fowle, the distinguished edu- 
cator, and founder of the "Monitorial 
System," then an important subject in 
educational circles, and George B. Emer- 
son, who had a noted private school in 
Boston, and who assisted in organizing 
the Boston Society of Natural History 
(for which he wrote a valuable report on 
Trees and Shrubs of Massachusetts), were 
both familiar figures. Mr. Allen, quick 
to catch their inspiration, tried the Moni- 
torial System in his school, and was one 
of the first members of the Natural History 
Society. 

A. Bronson Alcott, the gifted father of 
Louisa Alcott, a deep thinker and moralizer, 
used to come from Concord to hold parlor 
conversations here; his original thoughts 
and high spiritual aspirations were very 
elevating; he would talk for hours, and 
seemed nc\-cr to know when to stop. He 



was a vegetarian, and held that a vegetable 
diet would produce unrufHed sweetness 
of temper and disposition. His daughter 
Louisa used to say laughingly that she 
never had eaten meat, but she was often 
very cross. 

My dear fellow townswoman, Maria 
Mitchell, late professor of astronomy at 
Vassar College, whose telescope I had 
often the opportunity of looking through 
in my, girlhood, came to see us, and, in 
talking of our desire to visit Europe, said, 
"Go, if you live on a crust of bread ever 
afterwards!" 

Lucretia Crocker, a schoolmate, with a 
character of rare gentleness and sweetness, 
was often with us. She was chosen by 
Horace Mann to go to .Antioch College 
with him, as Professor of Mathematics. 
She also went south with Mrs. Edna Cheney 
in connection with the Frcedman's Bureau, 
and after\\-ards was chosen one of the first 
supervisors of the Boston schools, which 
position she filled vi'ith honor till her death. 

An interesting visitor was Miss Bcilte, 
afterwards Mrs. Kraus-Bolte, who later 
maintained a successful kindergarten in 
New York city. She came with letters 
to us from her aunt, a German authoress, 
Amelie Bolte, of Dresden, whom we saw 
much of, and who, knowing our interest 
in kindergarten work, arranged for us to 
meet and have weekly interviews with 
Frau Baroness von Marenholtz Biilow, 
the great disciple and interpreter of Froebel, 
when we were in Dresden. Previously !Mr. 
Allen had secured for the first kinder- 
garten in America, in connection with his 
school, Mrs. Louise Pollock, a German 
lady imbued with the love of children and 
the spirit of Froebel. 

As Mr. Allen was alert and awake to all 
the burning questions and reforms of the 
day, he was brought into contact with 
many of the greatest reformers in Massa- 
chusetts, and many came to our house. 
I well remember the first time I saw Mr. 
William Lloyd Garrison, which was soon 
after I came to West Newton. I had 
looked upon him as a man to be almost 
feared, and when one of our good friends 
brought him to tea one night, I was quite 
overpowered to find him so gentle, so 
gracious, and charming. Theodore Par- 
ker, too, it was a pleasure to meet, he was 
so uplifting and inspiring in all that he 
said. He had such power and pathos in 



MEMORIES OF ONE HOME 



147 



his voice, he carried every one with him 
resistlessly, and could move one to tears 
or laughter alike. He pictured one's 
shortcomings vividly, and )-et sent one 
away hopeful and comforted. 

Although Wendell PhiUips, Charles 
Sumner, and Louis Agassiz never came 
to our home, they were warm friends of 
ours, and came to lecture in West Newton. 
Mr. Allen acted several times as one of 
Mr. Phillips's self-appointed body-guard, 
when he spoke in Boston, especially during 
the John Brown excitement, when Mr. 
Phillips was followed home by a howling 
mob. 

Our house was one of the stations of 
the underground railroad, as Mr. Allen's 
ancestral home in Medfield had been to a 
greater extent. This made Booker Wash- 
ington and others of the colored enthu- 
siasts for education always welcome guests 
at our board. 

Mrs. Lucy Stone, with her sweet face, 
■musical voice, and wonderful eloquence, 
was always a charming guest. Never 
shall I forget the first time I heard her 
in my Nantucket home. She seemed a 
shght, frail girl in her figure, but her face 
and her eloquence made me a convert to 
her cause then and there. Her husband, 
Mr. Henry Blackwell, has often been with 
us, an earnest, honest, effective speaker, 
faithful to a cause towards which the 
world is moving and has moved with rapid 
strides. Mary A. Livermore, whose high 
ideals have accomplished so much in the 
world, came to us, when lecturing in West 
Newton. Mrs. Edna D. Cheney, whose 
love of everything true and noble made 
her fearless in asserting herself, alwa3-s on 
the side of truth and justice, sat by our 
side on our Golden wedding day. Mrs. 
Anna Garlin Spencer took tea with us on 
the night that she lectured in the city hall. 
Her fame and eloquence were such that 
there were scarcely seats sufficient for the 
crowds that assembled to hear her. 

Col. Thomas Wentworth Higginson, 
the graceful speaker, whom every one 
knows and loves, has sat in our parlor and 
given us of his wisdom; as has our grand 
old friend, Mrs. Julia Ward Howe, — both 
of whom were present not long ago at 
the Longfellow Memorial, in Saunders 
Theatre, and showed to the assembled 
multitude how gracefully they are growing 
old. 



A host of other charming people come 
to my mind as I think of the past in New- 
ton. Ceha Thaxter lived in Newtonville 
and brought her boys to school to Mr. 
Allen; they were children of nature, and 
with their mother knew and loved every 
flower of the field and every insect that 
crawled upon the earth. Miss Mary C. 
Shannon also hved in Newton, one of the 
noblest of women, and of queenly bearing; 
she was tenderly interested in every human 
being that came under her influence; she 
treated her animals as dear friends, and 
in talking of her flowers and the wonderful 
works of God, she seemed like one in- 
spired. I felt always near the gates of 
heaven when listening to her conversation, 
on her frequent visits at our home. She it 
was who secured Auntie Pomroy for the 
mother of Newton's orphan and destitute 
girls, and was the prime mover in founding 
that Listitution, which has done, and is 
doing, such a noble work in saving these 
children from being a burden to the city. 

Mrs. Caroline Dall, the wife of ' Dr. 
Wm. Dall (who did so much for thirty 
years as missionary in Lidia) and mother 
of the present curator of the Smithsonian 
Institution in Washington, came to West 
Newton to live, and sat often at our table. 
She was famed as a writer and lecturer, 
and exemplified the fact that a literary 
woman could be a model housekeeper. 
Mrs. Caroline Severance, too, Uved in West 
Newton and talked often of her plans for 
the advancement of woman's interests. 
She was the founder and first President 
of "The New England Woman's Club of 
Boston"; she moved after\vards to Cali- 
fornia and founded there many clubs, so 
that she is now called "The Mother of 
Clubs." Her eighty-seventh birthday 
anniversary has just been celebrated in 
Los Angeles, where she is still a worker 
in all good causes, and welcomes all to her 
home who need her advice or assistance. 

As Mr. Allen and his family were all 
educators or ministers, we had many dis- 
tinguished divines come to us. Rev. 
Joseph Allen, a veritable village pastor, who 
preached fifty years in one parish in North- 
boro, and was loved by every one, came to 
christen all our children and was always a 
welcome guest. His son, Rev. Joseph 
Henry Allen, the learned divine and author 
of so many religious books, used to walk 
from Jamaica Plain to breakfast with us, 



148 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON 



Sunday nKirniiigs, when he was to preach 
in West Newton. Rev. Samuel Longfellow, 
brother of the poet, came often to preach in 
West Newton, and sometimes came to 
dine with us. He took a special interest 
in Mr. Allen's boys, and invited them to 
visit the poet's home, the Craigie House, 
where he personally showed them about. 
Rev. Samuel J. May, whom some one has 
called "the only consistent non-resistant," 
came often to bring sunshine and joy 
among us; he was a sweet, wise friend to 
every one, especially to the oppressed and 
down-trodden. None knew him but to 
love him, even though they differed from 
him in his radical ideas. 

We were proud to have at our fireside 
Rev. Brooke Herford, — the genial, kind 
Englishman, who welcomed us so warmly 
to his English home in Manchester, before 
he was called to settle in America. With 
him came often his wife and gifted daugh- 
ters, one of whom, Beatrice, in her mono- 
logue entertainments, has made a proud 
name for herself; as has also his son Oliver, 
in a different way. 

.Rev. Horatio Stebbins, successor to 
Starr King in San Francisco, an old 
schoolmate of Mr. Allen's, told at our table 
of old school days, when on his visit from 
California. Rev. Charles F. Barnard, for 
whom the Barnard School in West Newton 
was named, and founder of the Warren 
Street Chapel in Boston, talked often of his 
work with the less favored class of children, 
whom his large-hearted interest embraced. 
Rev. Samuel Smith of "America" fame, 
and many others, were among our guests; 
while Rev. Charles G. Ames tenderly laid 
his hands on our heads and re-married us 
on our golden-wedding day. 

William Claflin and his wife, honored 
residents of our town, were earnest workers 
in every good cause, and called to their side 
the distinguished men and women of our 
country and many foreign countries, whom 
Mr. Allen and I were often asked to meet. 
Mr. Allen held many interesting talks on 
education with Mrs. Claflin, as he did also 
with Mr. Claflin on political subjects. At 
our home we knew and admired, as a loving 
father, Henry Wilson, vice-president of the 
United States, who would sacrifice anything 
but his honor, for his loved son. By his 
own efforts and steady adherence to prin- 
ciple he rose to his high position. Firm as 
a rock for truth and libertv, it is said he 



floated into power on the wave of [jrint iple, 
— the principle of human freedom. Andrew 
D. White, historian, educator, and poli- 
tician. President of Cornell University, 
Minister to Russia and Germany, we knew 
also in the relation of a fond father. 
William F. Draper, Minister to Italy, had 
two sons and two brothers (one, the present 
Lieutenant-Governor) with us, while Gov. 
Nathaniel P. Banks, Gov. A. H. Rice, 
John B. Alley, and other politicians came 
frequently to our home. 

From foreign lands have come to us Col. 
Liukea of Honolulu, who was Lord High 
Chancellor to the Queen, and who told us 
in his quiet, unostentatious way of his 
various diplomatic interviews at the Courts 
of Queen Victoria, the Czar of Russia, the 
King of Greece, etc. Abzemori Shimidu, 
Japanese prince and nephew to the Em- 
peror, came as a youth of si.xteen to study 
English; he brought with him his attend- 
ants of high military rank, to wait upon 
him, who paid him most profound respect, 
bowing to the ground when leaving him. 
Tanetaro Megata also came from Japan to 
study English, and if I remember correctly 
he was the first Japanese student who de- 
livered a lecture in English in America. 
This he gave in our city hall. Four )'ears 
ago he came to us as minister of finance 
of Japan. He was on a visit to study 
the finances of America and Europe. He 
dined one day with the Governor of Mas- 
sachusetts and Mayor of Boston, called on 
President Eliot at Harvard and the next 
day came to visit us before going to meet 
the President of the United States in Wash- 
ington. Three sons of President Prado, 
of Peru, while studying in West Newton, 
came frequently to tea with us. One of 
them, when asked if he would take sugar in 
his tea, replied in broken English, "Berry 
leetle, only sex or seben spoonsful." 

Mr. and Mrs. Elihu Vedder have been at 
our home when their son was with us, and 
one evening brought with them Mr. Ved- 
der's designs, which he painted in the 
Huntington House in New York. Mi.ss 
Jane Hunt, sister of the noted artist William 
Hunt, and herself an artist, came to see us, 
and showed us some of her lovely sketches 
of Pinehurst, North Carolina. Joiseph 
Clark, the excavator at Assos, a pupil in Mr. 
Allen's family, exjilained to us, one even- 
ing, his work at Assos, where he was sent 
bv the .-\rcha;ological Society of .\merica. 



THE STAR OF NORUMBEGA 



149 



Dr. Zakrzewska, to whom more than to 
any other is due the success of woman in 
the noble profession in which she led the 
way (for all, poor and rich alike, found in 
her a sympathetic friend), came with Dr. 
Hariot K. Hunt, another pioneer of women 
physicians, who talked most beautifully 
of the care of children. Alice Freeman 
Palmer, ex-president of Wellesley, with her 
grand outpouring spirit of hope and cheer, 
whose life of service was so beautiful and 
fruitful, a power for good work and the 
elevation and cultivation of woman to the 
end of her all too short life, came to talk 
of her personal recollections of the poet 
Whittier. Richard Edwards, superintend- 
ent of schools in Illinois, Supt. Seaver of 



the Boston schools, Supt. Philbrick, and 
many others, came to us for exchange of 
ideas at intervals. 

Before closing, it would be appropriate 
to mention that West Newton, fifty years 
ago, seemed to be a centre for literary 
and cultivated people, drawn partly, no 
doubt, by the fact that Horace Mann had 
made his home here. Hawthorne, brother- 
in-law of Horace Mann, after his return 
from the Brook Farm settlement, came 
here, and here penned his "Blithedale 
Romance." Lydia Maria Child, too, wrote 
here "The Life of Isaac T. Hopper," in 
the house on the corner of Chestnut and 
Fuller Streets, where she with her husband, 
David Lee Child, resided for a time. 



THE STAR OF NORUMBEGA 



BY ALICE R.A.NLETT 



UPON a bright spring day, Biarn, the 
young captain of the Norsemen's fort 
on Norumbega Water, and his af- 
fianced bride, Vigdis, the daughter of the 
governor of the land, walking in the May- 
fragrant forest, came into a sunny glade 
through which a sparkling brook, with rain- 
bow spray, leaped, singing, over moss-flecked 
gray rock terraces; swinging above the shin- 
ing water, upon the branch of a birch-tree 
which gleamed white through its mist- 
like veil of young green foliage, an oriole 
sang as sweetly as the silver-toned water; 
the great oaks about the glen were flushed 
with the soft peach-bloom and rose of their 
unfolding leaves, and pale, fluttering anem- 
ones and flashing blue violets sprang from 
the turf. 

Vigdis had but a few months earlier 
come from the old home of her family on 
the desolate coast of Greenland, and her 
heart thrilled joyously in this wonderland 
of trees aleaf with verdure and flower- 
bright fields. "Surely," she exclaimed, 
".this Vinland, Biarn, must be the most 
beautiful of all lands! How happy we are 
to have a share in building up the home of 
our people in this country!" 

"Vinland is fair," Biarn answered, 
"and oft'ers rich gains for toil, with its 
fur-bearing beasts of the forest, its broad 
rivers teeming with fine-fleshed fish, and 
its great store of choicest masur-wood in the 



burrs of these ancient oaks; this merchan- 
dise is precious in the old lands, where it is 
sought at a high price for valued utensils, 
and, carven cunningly and gold-ornamented, 
is made into the sacred_chalices of the altar. 
Yes, the Norseman has come to a fair and 
fertile land; still, there may be for him 
years of conflict with the Skraelhngs of the 
forest; though, sometimes, they seem not 
unfriendly, they ever love to make a thrust 
in the dark. We have driven them in 
fight; yet we Norsemen are few in the land, 
and how many savages lurk in the wilder- 
ness, who can say?" 

"But when our peoples know each other 
better, we may be friends," Vigdis replied. 
"Let us welcome the SkraeUings to Norum- 
bega and teach them the good knowledge 
of the White Christ that we have brought 
across the sea, while they, perhaps, teach 
us the mysteries of their forests. But who 
is that, Biarn, between the giant oaks, 
beyond the stream? With her black, 
flowing hair and dusky skin, she seems a 
SkraeUing, save that her face is gentle and 
her eyes look friendly-wise on us. See, she 
beckons!" 

"Do not trust her!" cried Biarn. 

Mgdis was already running to the brook, 
while the Indian girl sprang from slippery, 
spray-sprinkled rock to rock, across the 
stream. Her dark eyes met the clear blue 
eyes of the daughter of the Vikings in an 



150 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON 



earnest gaze, and she spoke brokenly in 
the Norse tongue, first to Biarn. "Fear 
nothing for thy White Lily from Golden 
Flower," she said. "Many moons have 
passed since a weird woman of our tribe 
said that, while Golden Flower's face was 
like the faces of her own people, her heart 
was white and held burning love for the 
white strangers. Golden Flower knew not 
what she meant, until the Star Spirit showed 
wonderful, giant birds with wide-stretched 
pinions, floating and flying through the 
morning mists, over the great water, coming 
from the sunrise and bringing, between their 
wings, strange men with skin like the snow- 
in winter, hair like the yellow sunshine in 
autumn, and eyes like the blue sky in sum- 
mer; then Golden Flower knew that these 
were the white strangers whose love was in 
her heart. 

"After many da_vs, the men shown l)v 
the Spirit came truly and cut down our 
trees, took our furs, and built their wig- 
wams of wood and stone. The Indians 
sometimes feared and went away, and 
sometimes feared not and came near, but 
always, in their heart, they hated; only 
■ Golden Flower in her heart loved the people 
of the sunshine hair and the heaven-blue 
e3'es; and, unseen in the forest shadows, 
she watched and listened and learned the 
new words, and ever wished to do some 
good thing for the strangers. Still, she 
speaks not, but waits and w-aits till the 
Spirit shows that only to a Wliite Lily 
maiden must her good gift be given. Then, 
in the Star, she sees that WTiite Lily coming 
nearer and nearer, across the dark green 
waves and in the strangers' city yonder. 
Still she waits, till this sunrise the Star 
shows the day has come when Golden 
Flower speaks to the White Lily ^\•ho has 
eyes to see what others cannot see. 

"Look, where the sunshine falls on the 
gray rock! There is Golden Flower's 
gift of Jove to the strangers. Seek it, trust 
to it, for in it thou shalt see things far away 
and things yet to be; thou shaft see what 
others cannot see, and know what others 
cannot know; and the Star, as it has been 
for a sign to my people, shall be a sign and 
guide for good to thy people, if they will be- 
lieve thee and the Star." 

Vigdis and Biarn, wondering, followed 
the Indian girl to the gray ledge, in the dark 
surface of which they saw, indeed, a crystal 
star, white in the shade as a new-fallen 



snowflake, but, when the sunshine fell on 
it, blazing like a blood-red ruby or gleam- 
ing with gold and emerald and violet rays. 

X'igdis fixed her eyes upon the Star in a 
keen gaze which seemed to pierce the roik 
and see the far-away, even as the gleaming 
blue eyes of her Viking fathers penetrated 
the shrouding mists of the Atlantic, .seeing 
what others could not see. So seeing, 
did the old sea-kings find their way across 
the unknown, mysterious ocean to Iceland, 
Greenland, the desolate clift'-bound shorts 
of the Terra Laboratoris, and, at last, to the 
pleasant western hind that they called 
Vinland, from the abounding ])uri.)ie grains 
of its autumn. 

"A star," the Norse girl murmured, "a 
star set for a sign. Have not the stars ever 
been the friends of our race? Did not we 
rejoice upon the great .sea, when, through 
tile l)lack night-clouds, a star gleamed on 
is!-' Have not the sea-kings of our North- 
land sailed ever by the unchanging star 
of the north sky, guided by it to many lands, 
even to these shores of blossoming flowers 
and purple fruits of the vine? This Star 
also shall be a weird of good and a guide to 
the Northmen." 

"It is a gift to thee and to thy tribe, for- 
ever," said the Indian, solemnly. "For- 
get it not, when Golden Flower is no longer 
here." 

" O, do not go!" cried Vigdis, clasping the 
girl's arm of bronze with her firm white 
hand. "Let our two peoples become 
friends. Thou and I will teach them to 
hve together in friendship; come with us 
and learn the good knowledge of the holy 
White Christ that we have brought from 
our old northern home, and teach us the 
mystery of your forests." 

"Golden Flower has only the white 
lieart, not the white face," the Indian 
replied, "and she must go with her own 
people." 

Even while she spoke, she glided silently 
away and was lost in the forest shadows. 
In the low sunshine, the crystal Star blazed 
fiery crimson for an instant, and then was 
cold and white. Wondering and thought- 
ful, Biarn and Vigdis walked through the 
violet twilight shades of the dewy, May- 
sweet forest to the fort on Norumbega 
Water. 

When the year's da3'S were at their 
longest and Norumbega land was at its 
fairest, the Bishop came over the sea, from 



THE STAR OF NORUMBEGA 



151 



Greenland, and on Saint John's Da\-, in 
the httle church of Norumbega City, ]5iarn 
and Vigdis pledged their marriage vows. 
Then, leaving the wedding-company keep- 
ing festival, the bride and bridegroom 
paddled up the shining river to Biarn's 
quarters in the fort. 

As once, upon the way, they lingered 
beneath a bank thickly grown with glossy, 
green-leaved shrubs starred with white 
l)lossoms, suddenly a dark hand, thrust 
through the tangle, dropped a garland of 
fragrant, golden-hearted water-lilies upon 
Vigdis' hair of sunshine-3-ellow, while a 
soft voice spoke, "Remember the Star, 
Wliite Lily, even this day, remember. 
Golden Flower says her long farewell." 

When Biarn called, no answer came, 
and no one was to be seen in the green 
wilderness. But Vigdis remembered, and 
that afternoon, when the woods were golden 
in the westering sunlight, she walked with 
Biarn up the brook-side to the forest glade, 
carpeted now with strawberry vines, snowy- 
flowered and crimson-fruited, and all 
abloom with the delicate pink-petalled wild 
roses of the land, while in the midst of the 
flowers gleamed the white crystal of the 
Star. 

Vigdis smiled and said, "The Star is 
flower-decked in honor of our marriage- 
day." Then she fell silent, gazing into the 
crystal, while Biarn gazed on her. 

"It is strange," the girl murmured, "the 
forest and brook and ledge are gone, and I 
see only whirling, drifting mists. Now 
there is a bright gleam in the mist, and there 
are shadowy, uncertain forms. Now, the 
picture is plainer; through a forest, beside 
a river, go many of the Skraellings, painted 
in gaudy colors and carrying tomahawks; 
their faces are fierce and frightful, and they 
are set toward Norumbega; from a deep 
copse, unseen by them, Golden Flower gazes 
earnestly at me; she means a warning. 
Oh! I know what is meant; the savages 
are near and plan an attack. Yet all will 
be well if we prepare for them. Biarn, do 
not think this an idle, fancied vision! 
Believe me and the Star! " 

"Come, then," he cried. And, hand in 
hand, the two sped through the fresh, cool 
forest shadows, calling, as they passed, to 
the broad-shouldered, ruddy-haired Norse 
woodmen who were still, in the twilight, 
heaping great burrs of masur-wood by the 
brook. 



In the fort, Biarn gave orders, swift and 
urgent; a canoe manned with powerful 
men was sent at all speed down the river, 
to carry warning to the feasting company in 
the city, of a possible attack from the 
Skraellings. In the fort, all was action; 
the river-gate, the brook-gate, and the 
forest-gate were barricaded; keen-sighted 
watchers were set upon the look-out; and 
the men, that night, lay down to sleep with 
l)::tllc axe and spear in hand. Biarn went 
silently from point to point, peering out 
into the soft darkness of the summer night, 
upon the shifting, startling shadows of the 
forest and over the dark, rippling water, 
twinkling with star reflections. Silently, 
at his side crept Vigdis; once she pointed 
toward a shadow that shot from beneath 
the farther iiank of the river, and more than 
once they saw forms eree]! stealthily from 
tree to tree, but ^'.11 was still until the last 
watch of the night, when the mists lay like 
snow-banks upon the water; then suddenly 
there was a furious attack on each of the 
gates of the palisaded fort. But before 
the heavy logs yielded to the blows rained 
thick and f;;st on tlicm, stalwart Norsemen 
stood ready witli iheir s|:)ears and axes, 
and every du^ky form tliat pressed through 
the openin^j; was thrust Ixuk, a mass of 
clay. Finding the Norsemen thus upon 
their guard, the savages fled into the deep 
woods and were seen no more; though, for 
weeks, the Norsemen remained on guard 
in city and fort. The people wondered 
how Biarn had discovered the Indians' 
plot, and Vigdis said, "Golden Flower's 
gift was, as she promised, a sign for our 
good." 

It was a mellow autumn day, when next 
Biarn believed it safe to go so far from the 
fort as to the glade of the faUing brook; 
the grapes, distended with spicy juices, 
hung purple beneath their soft bloom, and 
the fragrant white foam-flowers of the 
clematis curtained the gray ledges. The 
glen was ablaze with gold and crimson 
foliage, but, in all the rioting splendor of 
color, the Star shone with its own strange, 
lustrous beauty; and, gazing into its crystal, 
Vigdis said; — 

"The silvery mist hangs heavy; now, it 
parts. I see great evergreen trees; the 
snow falls on them; and beyond is a wide, 
rolling river, not like our Norumbega, but 
so great that it seems like the great sea- 
water itself; along its shores go the Skrael- 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON 



lings, marching in single file; they are far 
from us; we need not fear them. 

"Golden Flower is there; she points 
toward a white man; one of our own people 
he must be, but I cannot see plainly. Oh, 
now he comes into the Hght; he is like, yes, 
he is Leifson, the overseer of the wood- 
cutters. His face is dark and evil; mur- 
der is written on it." 

"But art thou certain, Vigdis?" asked 
Biarn. " Leifson, truly, is a silent, sulking 
fellow, but he is keen in managing the 
work and strong in ruling the men." 

"The Star shows plainly," answered 
Vigdis, "and I believe it. Beware of 
Leifson. There is terrible wickedness in 
his face." 

"Seest thou more, Vigdis?" 

"No more, the mist clouds float over all. 
But, Biarn, remember the omen of our 
marriage day, and believe the Star." 

When young Leifson was questioned, 
he stood scowling and dumb. But one of 
the other men, fearing Biarn's mysterious 
knowledge, declared the plot that Leifson 
had made to kill the captain and officers, 
put himself at the head of the men, and 
carry across the sea the collected store of 
miisur-wood and make himself rich by its 
sale. 

The people, wondering again at their 
leader's suspicions, gave him their loyal 
obedience; and Biarn and Vigdis believed 
more deeply in the wonderful Star, which 
twice, by its vision-warning, had saved them 
and their people from destruction. 

It was a glittering midwinter day, when 
Biarn and Vigdis went on their next pil- 
grimage to the strange Star, walking o\-er the 
glistening snow-pavement, beyond the last 
clearing where the masur-gatherers were 
laying low the giant oaks, to the glen of the 
failing waters. The fretting, foaming 
brook, with silvery music, sprang down 
its terraces, fringed with ice-jewels flashing 
the rainlww colors, and the glen lay in the 
untlecked whiteness of the virginal snow, 
in the midst of which the Star blazed with 
ruby and violet flames. 

Vigdis, gazing into the heart of the 
crystal, said slowly, "The mist curtains 
float and toss; now the light comes, and I 
see the forest by the great river; it is spring, 
and bright blossoms tremble in the grass 
by the rolling tide; the Skraellings are 
there, and their faces are turned toward 
Norumbega. Golden Flower's face is sad 



as she lifts her warning hand; the savages 
are surely coming back, and they are many, 
many more than formerly, multitudes of 
them with terrible faces beneath the war- 
paint. 

"Now the mist falls over all; but it 
parts again, and I see the shore at Norum- 
bega City and the Norsemen's ships on 
the strand, pointed to the great sea-water; 
they are sailing and we are going on them, 
and all our people. On and on we sail, 
over the dark green waves with their white 
foam-flowers; on and on, farther than 
Greenland, farther than Iceland. Ah, 
Biarn, the Star bids us leave our Norum- 
bega. 

"But there is more. I see a land^of 
sheer cliffs and snowy mountains rising 
from the sea, and gleaming sapphire-blue 
fjords between grim mountain walls; the 
Norseman is here. Now I see an island 
shore beaten by angry, leaden waves be- 
neath a dim blue sky; here, too, are our 
people. Now there is another land, very 
fair, in the faint green of early spring, and 
the oaks are rose-flushed as they are here 
in Norumbega. This same land passes 
into summer bright with golden-hearted 
roses, as Norumbega was on our marriage 
day. Now it is autumn, and the trees blaze 
in orange and crimson, and purple grapes 
hang in luscious clusters. And now, 
winter is in the Star-land and all is fleecy 
whiteness, glittering with many-colored 
ice gems. This country is our own Norum- 
bega, and far away upon a mountain soaring 
into clouds stands Golden Flower, point- 
ing toward her people marching away and 
disapiJearing into the sunset. 

"Another people is landing on these 
shores. Their faces are white, and some 
of them have hair of the sunshine-yellow 
and eyes of the Norseman's blue. They 
are Norsemen, yet mingled in blood with 
another race, the race of the sea-beaten 
island, as strong and brave as that of our 
sea-kings. This people goes through 
Norumbega, and far beyond, into the 
great wilderness and across the mountains; 
the men are building here homes and a 
nation. Norumbega is to be the cradle 
of a people yet unknown. I see their day 
marching on in the Star-land. But first 
we must sail back across the waters. The 
Star says that not yet may the Norseman 
build his empire in the Norumbega land, 
Ijut the promise waits and shall be fulfilled. 



THE STAR OF NoRUMHKGA 



153 



"Now the silvery mists fall, ;ind I can 
see no more." 

A gleam of sunshine shot thnni^li the 
pearly glen, and the Star blazed with rosy 
shooting flames, then the sun sank and the 
glade was solemnly white and still, save 
for the silvery brook-song. 

Then, suddenly, through the gentle 
voice of the stream, Biarn heard the call 
of the water, ever compelling to the brave 
men of his race, the call that of old had led 
his fathers on and on, beyond one unknown 
sea after another, and which was to lead 
him and his people again back and forth, 
from land to land. In his flashing eyes 
Vigdis saw the answer to the call, the 
strong resolve to fare forth to other lands 
and other deeds. 

When spring again flung her first faint, 
shimmering green veil over Norumbega 
woods, Biarn heard still more urgently the 
compelling call, and the Norse settlers, 
under his direction, gave up their Vinland 
homes, and sailed eastward to Greenland, 
and some, among them Biarn and Vigdis, 
to the old Scandinavian home of their 
race. And when the Red Indians came 
back to Vinland, in overwhelming numbers 
and with the resolve to drive out the Norse 
strangers, these were gone, leaving behind 
houses, churches, river-dams, and fort- 
walls, to be swept away by tlie sa\';;ges 
and by the warring elements of centuries, 
until scarce a trace should remain. 

But Biarn and Vigdis, and their chil- 
dren and children's children, with the 
splendid restlessness of their race, were 
ever lured on by the insistent call of the 
spirit to a greater beyond; and in after 
years they crossed the water to the island 
country, where others of their people had 
gone before, and where the Norman, seek- 
ing the new, and the Saxon, establishing 
and ennobling the old, became mingled in 
one world-winning and world-enlightening 
race. Among these English children of 
the young captain of Norumbega, long 
years after its fort and citv were almost 



forgotten, were man}' of valor and learning, 
high of rank, in name and soul, and some 
of these, sailing with the sea-kings of 
England, like their Norse ancestors, obey- 
ing the call of the waters, fared forth across 
the ocean, still, in their day, a wilderness 
of dangers and mysteries; and these, again 
like their fathers, came to the western 
land, which they won at last from every 
hindering difficulty, and in which they 
built up a nation, composed of many 
races, but founded on the corner-stone 
of that race which is both Saxon and 
Norman. 

In a certain glade of the old Norumbega 
land, where a singing brook leaps with 
rainbow s,\m\y over shining rocks and 
emerald mosses, in the flickering shade of 
ancient oaks rose-flushed in spring and 
crimson-flamed in autumn, there is a gray 
ledge tangled over with frail, pink New 
England roses, or white foam-flowering 
clematis, and purple-fruited vines, and on 
this ledge, hidden beneath ivory-tinted 
and pale beryl lichens, the growth of nearly 
nine centuries, still gleams the Star of 
Norumbega, pearly white and waiting 
only for the sunshine to burst into its 
glorious blaze of ruby, violet, and amethyst. 
And if a maiden true of heart, loving well 
her people and having in her veins the 
blood of the old Viking family of Biarn 
and Vigdis, shall find the hidden crystal, 
it shall be to her and her race an omen 
for good and a star set for a sign. For 
her, in the crystal depths, the mist curtain 
shall be wthd'rawn, and she shall see things 
far away and things to be; and, seeing 
what others cannot see and knowing what 
others cannot know, she shall be able to 
give timely warning to her people and to 
guide them onward in the way of wisdom 
to fulfill their destiny, guided herself by 
the gift of the white-hearted daughter of 
the old inhabitants of the land to the white- 
faced daughter of the Norseman and to her 
race forever, the gift of the mystic Star of 
Norumbega. 



154 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON 



JUST ENOUGH 

Between Too Little and Too Much, 
Just Enough suspended swings; 

If one give it but a touch, 

Lightly backward, forward springs. 

Yet, undaunted by rebuff, 
Hope is always tr}ang still 

To catch and hold the Just Enough, 
And believes at last she will. 



DANGER 



I DARE not to harbor 
A hate at my heart, 

Lest friendship that enters 
Should haste to depart. 

I dare not to surfeit 
\\'itli fcastinc; and wine. 

Lest the mrs>;;^c of music 
I should not divine; 



Lest beauty should blossom, 

.^nd I unaware; 
Lest fragrance unstented 

E.xhale in the air. 

Says the preacher within me, 
"Your reasons are light; 

You ought not to surfeit 
For love of the right." 



I question in answer 
(The argimient wins), 

"Should I summon a Seraph 
To pick up my pins?'" 



POPULARITY 

You know not where it may light, nor why, 
Nor when it may take to the wing and fly, — 

The bird of the flattering lay. 
But he glad if it sing for a while at vour door, 
And turn to the song in your heart as before, 

If it flutters and flits away. 

Selma Ware Paine. 



BIRDS OF NEWTON, PAST AND PRESENT 



BY C. J. MAYNARD 



THE number c.f liirds in any sec- 
tiiin of country must I)c regulated 
by two factors; first and chiefly 
li\' the food supply; second, to a less 
degree, and often supplementary to the 
lirst, by the facilities afforded for nest- 
ing. Birds vary greatly as to the food 
they require, and the environment they 
prefer for nesting, and regions which arc- 
most varied in their production of bin! 
food and in their offering of suitable nesting 
places will naturally have the largest num- 
ber of avian species. Such a section was 
once found here in Newton. 

Let us for a few moments turn back the 
lea\es of the book which Time is ever 
writing, and glance at the Newton of forty 
years ago, — at the woodlands, fields, and 
streams as they were, — and listen to the 
voices of the birds which lived here then. 
I will take as an example the environment 
of my own home as a type of man}' places 
in our town. Below the house was a 
beautiful meadow-, through which flowed 
a pretty brook, that in summer wound in 
and out among luxuriant grasses, the home 
of rails and bitterns, where the red-wings 
delighted to build their cup-shaped nests. 
Here, too, in places, tangled thickets of 
wild roses, alders, and ilex o\crarclicd the 
stream; in these secure hiding -plucs liwd 
swamp sparrows, and now ^ind then ,i 
short-billed marsh wren came to them and 
built his nest in the neighboring sedges. 
They were also the chosen home of the 
northern yellow-throat. Willows grew 
beside the stream in detached clumps, or 
in long rows. To them came hosts of 
migrating warblers when on their way 
north in spring, to glean among the growing 
lea\es. Here I always went to find Wil- 
son's black-cap. Later, in early July, the 
goldfinches nested in these willows. 

Above the brook was an old orchard, 
and in the cavities of the huge limbs of 
the apple-trees bluebirds and flickers 
found homes. When these trees were 
covered with pink-tinted blossoms, they 
were also visited by many warblers. Here 
I found the rare Tennessee warbler, and 
as for blackpolls, they came by scores; 
sometimes during favorable years, great 
waves of a number of species of other 



warblers would sweep across these apple 
trees. 1 remember once seeing them 
fairly covered with Canadian warblers. 
Orchard orioles sometimes came here to 
nest. In the higher meadows, near the 
house, meadow larks and bobolinks nested 
and sang all through the June weather. 
On a cedar-covered hill behind the house 
a number of pairs of purple finches built 
in the slender, swaying tops of the cedars, 
and 1 tould hear them singing every day 
as I sat at work in my laboratory. In the 
Via rberry Ijushes that skirted the old stone 
walls nested )'ellow warblers and chipping 
sparrows in abundance. Song, vesper, and 
field sparrows we had galore; indigo birds 
were common, and of course Baltimore 
orioles hung their swinging nests from the 
branches of all the tall trees about us. 

Some (if the>e birds are with us now, 
but the\' are few, for many changes have 
taken place. The meadow is drained, and 
the waving sedges have gone. The beau- 
tiful brook has been straightened into a 
ditch, and most of the willows have been 
cut down. The cedar hill is now an un- 
sightly gravel pit. The golfer rolls his 
ball where once the meadow lark and 
bobolink sang. The old orchard has 
nearly gone, and few or no migrating 
wiLibk-rs \-isit the few trees that remain; 
in >h()rt, the place has been made a desert 
for the birds, and as such possesses no 
attractions for them. There are many 
such deserts to-day in our city which were 
once the chosen resorts of many species of 
birds. 

Cold Spring Swamp, near the Newton 
Cemetery, once the home of hundreds of 
black-crowned night herons, and of an 
occasional long-eared owl, has been drained, 
and most of the white cedars in which the 
herons built their nests so many years have 
been cut down. Cabot Woods, formerly 
a famous place for birds, has had the under- 
growth removed and is constantly being 
burned over, destroying the carpet of dead 
leaves in which ovenbirds, towhees and 
brown thrashers used to nest. West New- 
ton Hill, which I remember as a great forest, 
is now nearly covered with houses, and 
what has long been the wildest part of 
Newton, the region about Oak Hill, is 



156 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON 



gradually beinc; cleared of woods. Can 
we wonder that we are losing our birds? 

I do not think I am overstating the 
matter when I say that, taken all in all, 
we have not more than one pair of birds 
nesting in Newton now where we had fifty 
pairs forty years ago. What is the remedy 
for this depletion? Briefly, let me say 
first, to those who have private grounds 
and want wild birds, — and who does not ? — 
plant native shrubbery, barberries, privet, 
and similar close-growing shrubs, and let 
them close together without trimming. Do 
not remove undergrowth from woodlands, 
and, above all, do not allow fire to consume 
the fallen leaves; let them lie. Public 
parks should have whole sections left per- 
fectly wild for the birds, without trimming, 
or without underbrush or fallen leaves being 



removed. Trees in such parks should not 
be sprayed (poisons so used are an injury 
to the birds), but gypsy and brown-tails 
should be removed by hand. The time 
has come for us to make an effort to keep 
what birds remain; let us make that effort 
earnestly. 

SUMMARY OF BIRDS FOUND IN NEWTON 

I have found in all about 184 species; 
70 of these have bred in the city, but 11 
now no longer do so; 14 are residents 
through the year; we have 7 regular winter 
visitors and 9 that come to us irregularly 
at this season; 27 are migrants in spring 
and fall; 63 are either of accidental occur- 
rence, or are found very irregularly, or 
have ceased coming at all for various 
reasons. 



WAYSIDE BROWSINGS 



BY LUCIA E. AURYANSEN 



THE browsing instinct is very close to 
nature. Children have it, and even to 
those whom civilization has reduced 
to three meals a day with napkins and fin- 
ger-bowls, the old appetite returns with the 
sight of a bunch of caraway, or the smell 
of peppermint growing by the roadside. 
It is country school-children who have the 
best and make the most of it. Now, in 
middle age, I can recall the progress of the 
seasons, as marked by the edible herbs 
that grew, — and every step of the road to 
school Viy the same tokens. 

The very first green thing to come up 
which we could nibble was the spearmint. 
It grew around a sunken hogshead which 
received the waters of a spring just below 
my father's driveway gate, and the tender 
shoots sprouted very early in the wet 
ground. Only crowfoot leaves appeared 
with these at first, but later, when the 
spearmint had shot up two or three inches 
and unfolded its pungent wrinkled leaves, 
we found tiny white violets in the same 
place. We used to lean over this spring 
to watch for Pompey, the lusty horned-pout 
who reigned supreme in its depths and 
promptly devoured every fish put in to keep 



him company. This was the only place 
anywhere near, where spearmint grew. A 
few yards down the road was a clump 
of willows kept low by frequent cutting, 
and below these willows was peppermint, 
with not a stalk of spearmint ever showing. 
The reason of this phenomenon I often 
pondered, but never learned. 

A little later the warm spring days 
brought out the pale green fiddle-heads of 
the osmundas, the beauty of which thrills 
me with joy now whenever I see them; 
but in those days — ruthless young barba- 
rians that we were — we pulled them up for 
the sake of eating the crisp and tender, 
albeit somewhat slimy, sprout at the base. 
These refreshed us on the way to school 
for a while, — along with the mints. There 
was no keener joy than when the warm 
days of late April wooed us to distant 
pastures in search of Mayflowers, as we 
called the arbutus. Truth compels me to 
confess that the dainty, fragrant blossoms 
were not the whole charm of the quest; for 
was it not in these pastures that the checker- 
berry bore most abundant fruit; and had 
not the crisp coral berries been ripening 
under the snows all winter for our delecta- 
tion ? We picked the Mayflowers, great 
sweet bunches of them, but what fun it 
was to lie on those soft sunny slopes and 



WAYSIDE BRO\VSIN(;S 



157 



eat our fill, sometimes to the undoing of 
our digestion! 

The joy of munching rose to still greater 
heights when the checkerberry leaves started 
in early June. How we hunted for the 
first red shoots, almost all juicy stem, with 
two tiny leaves at the top, tender and spicy! 
And how joyfully we bore home to mother 
the first harvesting! We knew the hill 
slopes where they grew most abundantly, 
the special banks where they had the spiciest 
flavor, and the shaded nooks where we 
could find tender leaves in July, long after 
the sun-kissed ones had grown thick and 
leathery, and had hung out tiny white 
bells in promise of future berries. A 
bunch of tender, well-grown "chinks," 
as we called them, — "younghngs" is the 
name a friend recalls, — tempts me as much 
to-day as it did in my childhood, and noth- 
ing in the line of herbs appeals to me half 
so much. 

June brought other harvests, too. If 
nothing else offered, we could always break 
off branches of black birch, and wander 
along nibbling the aroniiitii l)urk like young 
deer. That does not taslr the >;inu- nowa- 
days, though the "chinks" have never lost 
their flavor. It was about this time of 
year that we sought the marshy ]3laces for 
sweet-flag root, which we always expci ted 
to enjoy a great deal more thr.n we did. 
The white tender part at the Ixise «( the 
stalk was good eating, if we did not go too 
far down; but a little of the root went a 
great way- On one unlucky morning we 
discovered that the little, green, club-Hke 
blossoms were tender and crisp, and we ate 
them — far too many of them — to our deep 
regret. 

In June, the wild strawberries ripened 
along the way, just enough to make us 
hunt for them and share the biggest and 
sweetest ones with the little brothers and 
sisters who trotted along with us. Other 
berries followed, — red raspberries, to be 
strung on long grass stems; an occasional 
bush of thimble berries, rare enough in those 
parts to be a special treat; and -one bush of 
blueberries, that grew in the wall of my 
father's field, so that we felt a sense of 
proprietorship in it, though we magnan- 
imously allowed the other children to 
share in its fruit. No berries ever tasted 
so good as those eaten from the bushes. 

Just before haying time the caraway- 
seed ripened. There was a good deal of it 



along the road, and the farmers have since 
had reason to regret its spread in their 
hayfields. A handful of caraway sprigs 
encouraged many a walk to school, and 
whiled away weary hours in the old white 
meeting-house. When we played mud pies 
or held little picnic dinners for our dolls, 
the seeds of the common wild mallow made 
most inviting little cheeses. We ate them, 
as we did everything that was harmless, 
but they were not very good, being tasteless 
and .slippery. 

I remember only one pleasant wood- 
road where we found pennyroyal growing 
wild, but it was abundant in our garden, 
and we always loved to strip off the pungent 
leaves with our insatiable Httle teeth. 
There was thyme, too, in that old garden, 
and I can still find the spot where it grew, 
though it disappeared twenty-five years 
ago. One of the most delightful dis- 
coveries of my grown-up years was a Maine 
pasture fairly carpeted with wild thyme 
in the full glory of its rosy purple bloom. 
Catnip grew all arovmd our premises, of 
course, but a little of that was sufficient for 
us. We did not rob the pussy cats. 

In the later summer we gathered black- 
berries along the road, scrambling over 
stone walls and pushing through thorny 
thickets, scratching our hands and en- 
dangering clean aprons, but counting it 
worth the cost if the walk to the post-office 
afforded us enough great, juicy berries — 
or even red and sour ones — to stain our 
lips and fingers. When September and 
October came there was fruit enough in 
garden and orchard to satisfy the needs of 
anv less insatiate, but we found more subtle 
charm in the bitter wild cherries or the tang 
of the hard little wild apples that dropped 
over the road. Another diversion which 
shortened the way to school was making 
cider. We had too many delicious fall 
apples at home to care to eat green ones, 
but we found great satisfaction in bruising 
hard Baldwins and sucking the rich juice 
therefrom. 

The crisp days of October brought down 
the chestnuts, and from the time when 
with infinite trouble we pounded the small 
green nuts out of the burrs, till the morning 
when a sharp frost and a lusty wind had 
scattered the beautiful glossy brown ones 
over the ground, we gathered them 'in 
our "pockets and devoured them as we 
went. 



158 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON 



So we nibbled our way through the 
season, Hke the squirrels, taking for granted 
as they do, that the earth waxed fruitful 
for our benefit. If it is a good thing to 
l)e a child, — and who will gainsay it? — it 
is a marvellously good and happy thing to 



be a country child; for he holds all nature 
in fee, not only for the satisfaction of his 
physical needs, but for the blessed minis- 
tration of sky and fields and brooks and 
growing things, — toward the enlargement 
and uplifting of his soul. 



WITHOUT A CHAUFFEUR 



BY M. C. T. 



LAST spring I caught this bit of con- 
versation, as I was walking on 
Winter Street: "Father wants one, 
but mother does n't." Of course I knew 
at once what they were talking about, 
and felt like stepping up and say- 
ing, "My dear young woman, go 
straight home and tell your mother that 
she will have to come to it." For / had 
opposed the coming of an automobile into 
the family menage, and yet the automobile 
is here, and, like many other modern things, 
it has, I fear, come to stay. And I am 
forced to admit that it has l)een useful in 
some ways. 

I cannot tell just when the idea of taking 
a week's vacation in the machine began to 
develop in my mind — I think it developed 
in my mind, but I am not sure. Husband 
and I have been one for so long, that we 
do not always quite know to which indi- 
vidual brain belongs the originating of any 
new or daring scheme. When it is a good 
one, I think it generally belongs to me. 

Certainly there had been nothing in the 
behavior of the car during the summer 
to warrant us in thinking that it would be 
a success as a touring car, and of course 
we knew that a Httle, second-hand runabout 
was entirely unsuitable for such a trip as 
we were planning. But we had had a 
strenuous summer, and a novel vacation 
for us both seemed a necessity. 

We had come down from the countr\', 
and the start was to be made from West 
Newton. The machine had been board- 
ing for a week, at a repair shop. We were 
very reticent about our plans when any 
of the neighbors came in — did not know 
whether we should take the night train 
for Quebec, or spend a week at Nantasket. 
The one and only thing we were sure of 
was that a vacation we must and would 
have. We had been duly instructed by 



our sons, who of course knew all tho.se 
things a great deal better than we (all sons 
do), just how we should stow our baggage, 
how absolutely necessary that we should 
remember that we were not in a touring 
car — and avoid any appearance of looking 
"fresh" — and we had received various 
other little admonitions, familiar to all 
fathers and mothers of really good and 
care-taking sons. We had our own opin- 
ions on the subject, but kept them care- 
fully to ourselves, and, while the sons were 
in Boston, gayly started for the Berk- 
shires. 

As the first part of the way, through 
Wellesley, Natick, and Framingham, was 
more or less familiar to us, it did not seem 
necessary to spend much time talking 
about the scenery. We saved that for a 
later period, and confined our conversation 
to such remarks as, "Do )'ou think the 
pimip is wdrkiiig?" — "How soon shall we 
liave to till u|i with water again ?" — "What 
makes this seat so hot?" — "Why do you 
suppose that gasolene indicator wobbles 
so?" — "What makes that horrid squeak?" 
— "I am sure something needs oiling." — 
"Won't you turn off the main and let me 
get out and see if the fire has gone out?" 
No one but a real automobilist can know 
how delightful and soul-stirring is such a 
conversation. W'e were so excited that we 
went up hill and down dale, leaving the 
good state road at one side, but did finally 
reach Worceslei', in fairly good condition. 

I want to sa\ right here that Husband 
never exceeded any speed hmits; when 
we were held up it was for other reasons. 
He frequently said we were going over 
twenty miles an hour; but at the end of 
the day we could never make it average 
more than ten. The only time that we 
were tempted to ride fast was when we 
were cHmbing the hill into Leicester,^ 



WITHOUT A CHAUFFEUR 



150 



that hill so well known to all automobilists. 
A friendly chauffeur, however, whom we 
met, pointed backward with a peculiar 
motion of his thumb, so we knew that 
there were trappers in wait for us, and 
moderated our speed. Early in the 
summer. Husband had had his experience 
with trappers, and did not care to repeat 
it. Summoned one Sunday afternoon to 
the bedside of a sick friend, he was riding 
at a pace which seemed to him quite called 
for, under the circumstances, when a man 
in plain clothes motioned to him to stop, 
and he found himself accused of exceeding 
the speed limit. Of course he e.xplained 
his errand — as only he ran explain. He 
told all about his siVk friend; how he had 
been delayed in starling td see him, because 
we had had the minister and his wife, 
newly returned from Europe, to dinner; 
that it did not seem as though he could 
have been going too fast; that it was his 
first offense, and that he had stopped 
immediately on being signalled; and he 
so worked upon that officer's feelings, that 
he was let off that time, with only an ad- 
monition never to do it again. 

In all our trip the only time that we really 
frightened a horse was when we were 
going down the long hill between Goshen 
and Cummington, and then we were driving 
carefully; but the horse, drawing a light 
open buggy carrying three people, two 
men and one woman, was young and 
skittish. When we were passing he reared, 
and, turning toward the automobile, evi- 
dently intended to come down with his 
front feet on mv head. I was dreadfully 
frightened, but kept very still. The other 
woman climbed out of the buggy as fast 
as she could, while one of the men called, 
"Take hold of that horse's head!" and the 
other said, "I am blind." This was a 
situation indeed; but the horse was quickly 
quieted, the harness mended, and all were 
ready for a new start. Then the female 
member of the party decLired thai she 
would not get into the wr.gini v,'j,:'.\u >lie 
should walk, if it took all day, and she tried 
to persuade her husband to follow her 
example, and walk too. At least I suppose 
he was her husband, because when she 
began to argue with him, he said in a very 
decided manner, "You be still." "But, 
Mr. Jones," she said, "vou know you are 
blind." "Yes," he replied, "I know I am 
blind, but I am not afraid." When we 



saw the last of them, the two men were 
riding and she was walking behind. 

Now, before we started. Husband, who 
really did not quite like the idea of going 
without a chauffeur to do the dirty work, 
had provided himself with a long cotton 
duster, to wear when he must do any 
tinkering to the internal organs of the car. 
Unfortunately he had developed a rheu- 
matic knee, and could not do any squatting; 
so instead of wearing the duster, and get- 
ting at the machine in the ordinary way, 
he carefully spread it on the ground, and, 
lying down at full length by or under the 
car, made what repairs were necessary. 
Sometimes it was in the .garage, sometimes 
by the side of the road. At such times, I 
refrained from saying anything — Husband 
generally said all that was necessary. 

At Northampton we thought it would be 
well to look over the college a little, and be 
prepared with an opinion — in case it should 
be asked for. We did not do this in the 
ordinary way, by visiting lecture and class 
rooms, or l)y drai^ging our weary feet 
through long dDrniiloiies and college art 
buildings, but inxitcd representatives from 
the different classes to dine with us, that we 
might judge what the finished product 
would be likely to be, — and I just held my 
breath and thought, "How much more the 
girls know now than they did when I was 
3'oungr' 

After college, what? It should have 
been Pittsfield in our case, but when we 
got within four miles of Dalton, and were 
beginning to feel quite like old and ex- 
perienced motorists, everything stopped 
working. The gasoline indicator would n't 
indicate, the pump would n't pump water, 
the boiler would n't boil, the engine would n't 
make the wheels go round, and the machine 
came to a standstill by the side of the road. 
Well, we got out; that 's what they always 
do — you 've seen them by the side of the 
road lots of times, and have laughed at 
them too; I have — but I never will again. 
It was at this time that the really fine qual- 
ities in my character came out in strong 
relief. Although I had not approved of 
the machine in the first place, and had al- 
ways had my doubts about the desirability 
of possessing one, when Husband said that 
the engine was broken, and that that meant 
being towed into Dalton and sending the 
machine back to Newton by freight, I never 
once said, "I told you so," but just sat 



160 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON 



down Ijy the side of the road, and said, "I 
think I '11 have my knitting work." I am 
sure it was this peaceful and patient atti- 
tude of mine that prompted a party of 
tourists, who came along some time after, 
to take me into the most magnificent tour- 
ing car that it will probably ever be my 
good fortune to ride in. 

They were young people, who had been 
touring for eight days. They were very 
polite to me — and I have no doubt said to 
themselves, "That nice old lady, think of 
her sitting there so patiently with her 
knitting." The rule of the automobile 
road is always. "Can I do anything to help 
you?" and these people would have towed 
us into Pittsfield if they or we had had 
a rope. We always carry one now. 

I was sorry to desert Husband, but it was 
better than being left by the roadside my- 
self. I am not timid, but with night com- 
ing on, and wolves likely to be prowling 
round, I did not like to be left on a lonely 
road, even if it were only four miles from 
Dalton; and just before the friendly auto- 
mobilists came, when I began to detect in 
Husband a desin- to leave me to take care 
of the machine wliik' he went in search of 
help, I said pretty decidedly for me, "Now 
I am willing to do anything you want me 
to, except to be left here alone." This 
made him accept quite eagerly this in- 
vitation for me. I found temporary shelter 
at the hotel in Dalton, while a span of 
horses went back to tow in Husband and 
his automobile. 

I waited on the piazza until after dark, 
and, although inclined to be an.xious, de- 
cided that I would n't worry. I only 
thought, "If Husband does come on all 
right, and if he has n't broken any bones 
in trying to move the machine out of some 
one's way, and if he hasn't caught cold, 
and if he has n't eaten up all the chocolate, 
leaving none for me, and giving himself 
indigestion besides, I shall be only too 
thankful — and will certainly never propose 
a trip of this kind again." Of course I 
knew it was quite silly, even to come so 
near worrying as this. I take some credit 
to myself, however, for deciding to go in to 
supper at half past six, thinking, with rare 
presence of mind, that if anything should 
happen to Husband, it would be better 
for me to have had my supper first. Be- 
fore I had finished, Husband came, having 
enjoyed this new way of automobiling sti 



much that he decided to go right on to Pitts- 
field. The roads were good and the horses 
were good, and relieved of any responsi- 
bility except that of steering the machine, 
we rode through the gathering darkness 
with real pleasure — occasionally greeted 
by a passing automobilist with, "I 'm so 
sorry." 

We found that the machine could be 
repaired in Pittsfield, and stayed there 
two or three days, waiting for it. We 
wrote home that we were e.xploring the 
country round about — we did not say in 
electric cars, as we wanted to spare our 
family any anxiety about us, which they 
might have felt, had they known all the 
trials through which we were passing. 
When the machine was mended, we went 
on to North Adams. This was to be the 
limit of our journey; we started the next 
day on the home stretch. 

We had decided that it would be too 
much of a strain on our newly mended en- 
gine to go over Hoosac Mountain, and we 
would compromise by going round the 
mountain, as we wanted to get over on the 
east side, and come down through the 
Deerfield Valley. We called it going round 
the mountain; but it was climb, climb, 
climb, and the roads were not exactly 
boulevards. However, we got along nicely. 
I kept count of the time and distance. 
Husband said he meant to go slowly, be- 
cause he did not want to run any risk of 
breaking anything; for we did not know 
of an}- place where we could stop, before 
the end of the day's journey as planned. 

We seemed to be doing very well, and 
Husband had only had to get out once, 
and lie down on his back under the ma- 
chine. We were almost at the top of our 
climb, when something went "Ker-chunk." 
" Wliat do you suppose has happened now ?" 
"That 's just what I am going to find out," 
said Husband, and we both jumped out. 
Well, to make a long story short, the part 
of the engine that did n't break before had 
broken now, — and we were up a hilly road 
ten miles from North Adams. 

There was no question of leaving me 
waththe machine, indeed there was no ne- 
cessity, for we had learned by this time 
that broken-down automobiles by the side 
of the road were seldom carried away by 
any strolhng passers. We locked our 
valises and covered them with a rublier 
l:)lanket, for it had begun to rain, and walked 



THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS 



161 



back to the little cluster of houses which we 
had passed on the hillside as we came up. 

There, in a farmhouse, occupied by an 
Irishman, his wife, their family of shock- 
headed children, and a graphophone (which 
they kept going for my benefit), we waited 
two hours and a half. The mother, a 
fairly intelligent woman, was willing to 
talk — and to apologize for her ragged 
clothes; but the children, with vacant faces, 
seemed hardly capable of understanding a 
question, and much less of answering it. 
The youngest girl did brighten up a little 
when a doll was mentioned, and the mother 
said, "No, 'Lisbeth hain't never had no 
doll; I 've thought sometimes that when 
we went to North Adams with butter and 
eggs, we might get one, but we hain't never 
done it." 'Lisbeth has a doll now, and 
it has "practical eyes." 

Finally, a man having been found who 
was willing to undertake the job, we began 
our ignominious journey back to North 
Adams. It was broad daylight this time, 



and we had only one horse instead of two 
to pull us along. It took us three long 
hours — we went at a pace quite slow enough 
for Husband to answer all the questions 
that were asked, explain the details of the 
accident, and assure all who were inter- 
ested that no one was hurt. As we went 
through the little villages on the way, we 
were a source of much merriment to the 
small boys, but we felt that we were fair 
game, and Husband bowed politely to 
them as we passed along, with truly a most 
heavenly and benignant smile on his face. 

The next day we came back by train to 
^\'est Newton, reaching home quite late in 
the evening, having sent a carefully worded 
telegram, so that the care-taking sons 
should not be anxious about us. We were 
received cordially with, "Come in quick, 
and tell us what has happened to the auto- 
mobile, for we want to go to bed." 

After a long time the automobile too 
came back to West Newton, — but "that 
is another story." 



THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS 



BY ELECTA N. L. WALTON 



DEAR EDITOR: You have named 
your magazine "The Mirror," with 
the understanding that it is to fix 
in our memories scenes and events of 
interest in the early history of Newton. 
This is desirable, but from early life my 
motto has been, "Look forward, not back, 
and keep at work"; which impels me to 
say, "Newton has done well; what more 
can she do?" And so, instead of ask- 
ing your further attention to the past, let 
us try for a few moments to look forward 
through the double lens of faith and hope, 
and discover what the future has in store 
for us. 

The present only is; we dwell in it from 
birth to death; and where I stand in this 
great divide, I see a long procession of 
events converging to the front, and passing 
on into the irretrievable past. Some are 
materializing swiftly, some more slowly, 
but all impress themselves upon the retina, 
with more or less distinctness. 

Directly in front, and nearest just now, 
is the Bazaar; the time, about the close of 



our three days' entertainment. I see a 
bevy of busy workers counting their gains, 
not in money alone, but in love and in 
opportunities for future service. 

From the Federation president to the 
simplest worker, each is saying, "How 
well we have succeeded! We shall have 
this much for the Claflin estate, and that 
much for our other plans." 

Just beyond is the Claflin Homestead 
Association, — Mr. Day, the president, in 
the centre cif the group, supported by his 
efficient committee, — all with their faces 
wreathed in smiles at the accomplishment 
of their desires; for money from this 
Bazaar and from large-hearted contribu- 
tors has poured in and they have more than 
enough to pay for the whole estate! They 
are now debating what to undertake first. 

Farther on, I see not only the spacious 
athletic grounds fully equipped and in 
perfect order, but a public bath-house, 
with modern appointments and receiving 
an ever-increasing patronage; and, per- 
haps better than all, here is the High School 



162 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON 



Extension for Technical Training, — its 
advantages open to the whole city without 
partiality, as it is nearly equalized in dis- 
tance. For is not this the very centre of 
the city ? Apply your measure to the map, 
or, better, take a tramp from this estate 
in all directions, to the various Newtons; 
count your steps and see if these pulilic 
necessities could be better placed. So 
let us call this our Newton Centre and give 
a more appropriate name to the lovely 
village which has borne it till now. Its 
citizens can choose a cognomen more in 
keeping with its location, or with its special 
attributes. 

A gymnasium connected with the pro- 
spective public bath-house is waiting to be 
materialized, and there will be room enough 
left for an art museum and a home for the 
historical society, which might be placed 
imder one roof. We can wait for these 
last named luxuries, indeed must wait 
for them, for I see them only in the distance, 
dimly outlined, but growing clearer the 
longer I gaze. Let us hold them in our 
mental view, and will not each patriotic 
citizen himself preserve, or place under 
proper keeping, both his art treasures and 
his historical, to be utilized in his own iit\ ■? 

In the words of Mr. Day, "Ik re, llu-'ii, 
we have before us the possihilil\- of what 
we may call The William ClaflinPark, . . . 
centrally located and perhaps treated by a 
landscape artist, — with the thoughts of 
our citizens centred upon its future pos- 
sibilities. . . . There would arise in time a 
sentimental attachment to it that would 
lead our citizens to feel it an honor to have 
something to do with its advancement. . . . 
More and more our citizens are going to 
come into this realization, and in the joy 
of it are going to endeavor in their day and 
generation to help on the human race to a 
higher standard of living in all ways. .'\nd 
here, in Claflin Park, will be a place for 
the exploitation of this passion." 

I have hinted of other pet plans of the 
Club Federation than those which centre 
here. One of the most important for the 
physical well-being of all our city is a wise 
distribution of other public parks and 
playgrounds. The price of land is in- 
creasing each year, and open spaces are 
becoming less and less available for civic 
purposes. There should be public parks 
or playgrounds in every ward; and our 
city government has, in several instances. 



after the first half of the price has been 
contributed, wisely paid the other half and 
assumed the care of the grounds. Newton 
Centre has a fine playground secured on 
these conditions. Newton Highlands has 
utilized as a playground suitable space on 
public land near her grammar school 
building. Newtonville has an open space 
appropriated on Cabot Street, and Farlow 
Park in Newton was given to the city out- 
right. 

West Newton has liecomc quite con- 
gested; the only space left open near the 
business section, and vi'here children most 
abound, is the vacant lot opposite the rail- 
road station, on Margin Street, and it only 
needs efficient wire-pulling to secure the 
required half-price. Let me look through 
my glass, and see what the prospects are. 
Oh, yes; half a dozen women and as many 
men are already bent on the scheme, and a 
year or two, I think, may see its fulfillment. 
I will look again a little farther on. Yes, 
there is the outline growing more and more 
clear, — the upper half laid out in beds of 
shrubbery, etc., with seats for the weary, 
and the lower fitted for a children's play- 
ground, while space remains on the upper 
western side for a building, if need be, to 
:!(( ciminodate the city branch library and 
reading-room. 

Other wards not at present furnished 
with parks and playgrounds will be en- 
couraged to provide them in like manner, 
and the Federation is going to assist. Go- 
ing to assist? Is assisting already, and 
the Social Science Club, in starting the 
school garden in Nonantum, has set an 
example to be followed. That vacant lot 
on Jackson Street will soon be bought and 
paid for, and the school garden put on a 
IKTmanent basis. 

.\nd after playgrounds, what ? Cleaner 
streets! Our Social Service Committee, 
with the co-operation of the school superin- 
tendent and teachers, are determined so 
to increase the instinctive love of cleanli- 
ness in our children, that no litter will 
knowingly be left on the sidewalks, or un- 
necessarily thrown into the street. A 
brigade from each school, wisely officered, 
will keep watch, and, when necessary, 
report pupil offenders for correction or 
discipline. The pohce will heartily co- 
operate in these measures, and good- 
naturedly, but effectively, add the emphasis 
of law. 



ON THE PALATINE HILL 



Cleanliness under foot naturally leads 
to a wish for beauty at the side and over- 
head. Unsightly bill-boards will be re- 
moved and the preservation of our shade- 
trees will receive due consideration. Indeed 
movements for the appointment of a special 
tree warden are already started, and will 
be pushed till such an appointment is made. 

The impulse which the Social Service 
Committee is thus i;iving to the city's 
weli-beinij; will meet its return in the grati- 
tude of the city fathers, and in the wish 
of many a \'oter, that women, who have 
more leisure than most business men, 
could be induced to render still greater 
assistance. Our city is simply a collection 
of homes, and the government of our city 
is only a kind of e.xtended housekeeping 
which requires just about the same fore- 
sight and care as is required in a good 
home, differing only in degree; and as, 
in every well-ordered home, the best powers 
of both master -and mistress are required, 
so the administration of the city requires 
the best powers of both men and women. 

But woman's power, at present, is only 
advisory, and, as it were, at the short arm 
of the lever. All the more, then, should 
she put forth her skill to effect, through 
others, what she cannot do at first hand. 
Let us look into the future and see what 
woman herself is 'j^nin'j, to do about it. 

I see ;; little cluster of society women 
in earnest conversation. One is saying, 
"We have much more leisure than our 
mothers and grandmothers ever had, with 
our sewing machines and our knitting and 
our weaving machines doing for us what 



was especially woman's work, and much 
of our food is already prepared. We 
cannot employ our leisure in any better 
way than in studying municipal needs, and 
doing our best to see that they are sup- 
plied." 

Another group is saying, "Let us work 
for more cleanliness and better health; 
try for the abatement of the smoke nui- 
sance; for more effective sewerage; for 
the proper care of garbage, and for the 
strict observance of the no-license law." 

Other women are listening, nodding 
assent and saying, "Yes, we'll work for 
these improvements, till . we convince the 
voters and our city government that they 'd 
better be more active." 

Still another group is discussing educa- 
tional topics. I hear them saying, "We 
are allowed a voice in the election of the 
school committee; we must not lose an 
opportunity of expressing our preference 
at the caucuses before election as well as 
at the polls. We must keep in touch with 
the sthiiols themselves, certainly all parents 

I should like to trace the effect which 
these coiiferen.es, and the work they pro- 
pose, will haw upon the wmnen them- 
selves, antl upon the city, but space and 
time forbid. I will only add that I see in 
the distance a grou]3 of men, who, grateful 
for the interest and assistance shown by 
their wives, mothers, and sisters, are laying 
plans to secure an amendment of our city 
charter which will allow women to assume 
all the duties of citizenship, so far as mu- 
nicipal government is concerned. 



ON THE PALATINE HILL 

BY RICHARD BURTON 



Above the palace of the Caesars blow 
Poppies and buttercups, and rise cool trees: 
The palms and pines and slender cypresses. 
What pomps and passions buried under these, 

Long time agone, such a great while ago! 



OUR CONTRIBUTORS' CLUB 



THE MIRROR 

There once was a clever \oung Sirrali. 
Who said as he picked up the "^lirror": 

"This 'Mirror's' a book 

In which when I look 
All Newton I see see in the mirror." 

Harriette F. McIntvre 

CONVERSATIONAL RECIPROCITY 

It needs no analytical acuteness to dis- 
cover in ordinary conversation the precise 
analogies of current political theories re- 
garding commerce. My firm belief (and 
I am no Democrat) is that conversation 
should be on a free-trade basis, give and 
take, my best for your best, cargo for cargo, 
without fear or favor. That is my ideal; 
but for every conversational free-trader 
I have met, doubtless I have encountered 
a hundred protectionists. 

A conversational protectionist lives to 
build up home industry of the tongue. He 
will e.xport speech by the shipload, but he 
hates importers. Against them he builds 
a tariff wall of indifference superbly high. 
Against them he sets up a cordon of cus- 
toms-house inspectors, rude and merciless. 
"America for Americans," "My Ears for 
Me," is his slogan; and an opinion inter- 
jected into his monologues is scouted as our 
Boston Revolutionists scouted Tea. 

Now my present purpose is to suggest that 
we apply to conversation that modern de- 
vice, so fashionable in New England, known 
as reciprocity. Reciprocity is a cautious 
form of the Golden Rule. It means, "I 
will do for you what you simultaneously 
and very manifestly do for me." In other 
words, "You tickle me and I tickle you." 
Applied to conversation, reciprocity says, 
"I will listen to you, if you will listen to me." 
Some such arrangement would be highly 
useful. I would suggest an alarm-clock 
contrivance, that would sound at the ex- 
piration of one minute, or five, or whatever 
interval might be fi.xed by treaty. I can 
readily endure your five minutes, knowing 
that it will be cut off sharply by a bell, and 
that then, for five uninterrupted minutes, 
I can talk. Indeed, I can even get up an 
interest in what you are saying, being as- 



sured that thereby, in accordance with 
treaty, you will be obliged to get up an 
interest in what I shall say. 

Follow the next conversation at which 
_\ou may be present, and you will at once 
perceive the advantages of the proposed 
plan. Note how each participant in the 
unseemly affray thrusts in an "I," 
like the tip of a rapier. "I am reading 
Thackeray this winter, and I think "— 
"Oh, and / am trying to get up an enthusi- 
asm for George Eliot, and do you know" — 
"But / never could read George Eliot! 
Now / think that Richard Harding Davis 
is perfectly" — "I" — "I" — "I" — 
From such a verbal scrimmage there result 
many spiritual black I's. . 

It has come to be a habit of mine to recall, 
after talking with a man, how many refer- 
ences, if any, he made to any interests out- 
side his own. I want him to ask me what / 
am doing. And when I tell him, I want 
him to make another incjuiry about it, and 
keep on doing that until I have had a really 
good time talking about myself to some 
one that has inquired about me, and actually 
seems to walit to know about me. If I 
could find such a person, how I would lie 
in wait for him! How I should love him! 
And how glad I should he, in my turn, to 
draw him out! 

The same principle of reciprocity should 
be applied to letters, those leisurely con- 
versations of which Uncle Sam is the mute 
intermediary, — conversations year-long and 
life-long. When my friend writes to 
me, I want to know how he is getting 
along; of course I do, for he is my friend. 
But also, I want him to want to know how 
I am getting along. Who is not acquainted 
with letter-writers that are prompt, volumi- 
nous, undeniably bright, but wholly unin- 
teresting? .'\nalyze their letters, and you 
will find them wholly egotistical, — where / 
went, what I saw, and what / felt and did. 
There is no comment on your last letter; 
there are no inquiries for you to base your 
next letter upon. So far as you are con- 
cerned, your friend's epistles might as well 
be chapters in a book; and type is so much 
easier to read than penmanship. 



OUR CONTRIBUTORS' CLUB 



165 



The moralist would find in this matter 
the text for a sermon on selfishness. I 
prefer to treat it as a problem of social 
economics. If we can put our commerce 
of wheat and of silk upon the basis of re- 
ciprocity, why not our commerce of thought 
and experience? Just what social legis- 
lature is to formulate a model treaty, I do 
not know; nor what social court will pass 
judgment upon infractions thereof. I only 
know that the thing ought to be done, and 
that therefore it is in the way of getting 
done, somehow and sometime. 

Amos R. Wells. 



ON GROWING OLD GRACEFULLY 

Three things have happened to me. I 
sat one day at a parlor lecture, hearing about 
the men and women who lived in West 
Newton fifty years ago, when it suddenly 
occurred to me that I remembered those 
men and women. The ladies about me 
were listening as they might listen to anec- 
dotes of Horace Walpole or DoUy Madison 
or other interesting persons of those dim 
ages before they were born, but / — I had 
seen, and had talked with people who were 
prominent more than half a century ago. 
To these ladies I must really seem — old! 

Then again, one morning, I passed in 
the street a carriage waiting at a door. In 
it were two children. One, a baby of a year 
or two, was loudly and with violent mus- 
cular contortions expressing his dissatis- 
faction with the situation. The other, a 
boy of ten, with one hand on the reins and 
the other trying to restrain the baby, was 
struggling manfully with his responsi- 
bilities. "Look, baby, look!" I heard him 
say, as I came up. "See the nice old lady!" 
I had been told I was nice, I believed my- 
self to be a lady, I had begun to suspect 
I was growing old, but as a nice old lady 
I had never before contemplated myself. 

And now I have been asked to write 
upon the theme "How to grow old grace- 
fully." That settles it. To be sure, there 
lurks in the request a flattering unction 
that I can lay to my soul, but it proves that 
gracefully or otherwise, I have done it. I 
have grown old, and my last despairing 
clutch at middle age relaxes. How to grow 
old gracefully. Just what does that mean? 

If it means how by spending much time 
and thought and money upon one's personal 



appearance to hide as much as possible 
the ravages of time, it seems to me there is 
nothing, of all the things there are in this 
world to do, so little worth while. 

To grow old nobly, one must almost 
follow the advice of Dr. Holmes as to the 
training of children, and begin with one's 
grandparents, for always to have been well 
is important, and to have been born and 
bred in the nurture and admonition of the 
Lord is essential. 

Perhaps it means how to grow old in 
such a way as to enjoy life one's self, and 
at the very least to be no bar to the en- 
jo_\-ment of others. Even to do this the 
start must be made in quite early life. It 
is necessary to have acquired a habit of 
content. It is the discontent with the 
changed order of things that brings upon 
an old lady the charge we sometimes hear 
that she is "no comfort to herself or any- 
body else." .\s things that were once easy 
to do, become impossible, it is cheerjidly 
that they must be relinquished to others 
and younger people. Once accept the 
situation, and the little offices you have to 
accept from these younger folk become a 
source of pleasure, and lead to an access 
of friendliness between you and them. 

If possible, accumulate a daughter, and 
maintain good comradeship with her. 
There is no end to the ways in which she 
will help you to keep young. She wiU not 
let you grow careless in dress or bearing; 
she will keep stern watch over your table 
manners ; never for a moment will she allow 
the excuse, "I am too old," to keep you 
from doing anjlhing she wants you to do, 
— instead, she will quote to you Dr. Lav- 
endar's dictum, "If you find yourself 
thinking you are too old to do a thing, go 
and do it!" She will hold you up to mod- 
ern ways of thought, and she will surround 
you with a lively group of her own con- 
temporaries. 

In the nature of things, however, as you 
have to resign one by one the active duties 
and the control of things that have made 
so large a part of your life, you will have 
some solitary hours to spend. Well for 
you if they find you not without resource. 
Happy are you if you love books. There 
is nothing like them. But you need va- 
riety. Let us hope your fingers have Ijeen 
trained to needlework, and have not lost 
their cimning altogether. Sewing and 
knitting will beguile many a weary hour, 



166 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON 



and allow you still to feel of use in the 
household. 

Years ago, you should have fallen under 
the spell of some hobby, — half ashamed 
of it, perhaps, while your days were full 
and your duties many, indulging yourself 
in it only in few and far-between leisure 
moments. Now, long hours can be given 
to it, to the delight of your soul. There are 
few such hobbies that cannot so be used 
as to give pleasure to other people, young 
or old; and here again you have the blessed 
consciousness— which Charles Kingsley 
called "God-like and God-beloved" — of 
being of use. 

The grandmothers of most of us were 
brought up at a time when cards were 
frowned upon as among the deadliest snares 
of the adversary, and they therefore, poor 
old ladies, lost all the enjoyment those 
magical bits of pasteboard are capable 
of providing for old people. To be able 
to join neighbors or one's own family in 
any one of a hundred games, that can be 
innocent enough, is to give one's self and 
one's friends much pleasure; and for those 
hours when no neighbor drops in, and no 
member n{ tlie family is at one's call, there 
are scores of delightful games of solitaire. 
So far as things to do are concerned, so 
long as one can use eyes and fingers, Steven- 
son's Mnes 

"This world is so full of a number of things, ^^ 
I'm sure we should all be as happy as kings," 

.seem as applicable to the old lady in her 
room, as to the child in the garden. 

For the rest, do not e.xpect too much 
of the vounger people, but be graciously 
appreciative of so much attention as they 
dp give; enjoy society when you have it, 
and when yoii have it not, employ your- 
self with needle or pen or book or cards 
or your own special delightful hobby, with 
now and then a season of sitting with idle 
hands, inviting your soul, in the serene 
faith that always, through everything— 
"underneath are the everlasting arms." 
AI.\RY R. Martin. 



VERSES TO MRS. WALTON BY 
JULIA WARD HOWE 

The following verses were by Mrs. Julia Ward 
Howe on the occasion of a luncheon given to Mrs. 
Electa N. L. Walton at the Newton Club House, 
by the Newton Federation of Women's Clubs on 
December lo, 1903. Mrs. Howe was unable to 
be present, so sent these verses. 

I assert with deep respect 

That Electa is elect, 

And indeed too much respect her 

To allow she could be elect-er. 

Did that mate of hers select her? 

Had he reason to respect her 

E.xcellencies and perfection. 

When he made her his election? 

(Or perchance, was 't vice versa 

When they joined for better or worser?) 

I am grieving that f cannot 

Taste the banquet that you plan out. 

So I send this jeu d'espril, 

Wiich must speak for absent me. 

Hail then to your guest of honor! 

W'ould that I could wait upon her! 

But although I sing so small. 

What I say, I say for all. 

Friends, we ever shall respect her, 

Cluhs, we never will reject her. 

Wiseacres, we will not direct her. 

Critics, we will not correct her, 

And if alive 

At ninety-five, 
She shall still be our Electa. 



THE BODY'S ROLE 

The body's role. 
To serve the soul. 
If it usurp and master. 
What disaster! 

S. W'. P. 



NEWTON'S SUPERIORITY 
A member of one of Newton's Women's 
Clubs was preparing a paper on "Munici- 
pal and Household Sanitation." She had 
looked up everything she could find about 
the sewage farms of Paris and Berlin, 
the municipal systems of Great Britain, 
and the methods employed in the great 
cities of our own country. 

On the morning when the paper was 
to be given, she was reading it for the 
last time before going to the club, when 
the sudden thought came: "What about 
Newton? The men call here for the 
garbage, but what do they do with it?" 
some one might ask. 

The lady threw down the manuscript, 
ran to the telephone, and called up the 
Citv Hall; the following conversation is 
verbatim. 

"Hello! Is that the Board of Heahh?" 



OUR CONTRIBUTORS' CLUB 



"Yes." 

"Will you please tell me what we do 
with the garbage?" 

"A man should call three times a week. 
Does n't he?" 

"Yes. But what I want to know is 
the ultimate disposal of the garbage. 
Has Newton ever considered the question 
of a reduction plant ? " 

"Oh no! We contract with a man 
who has a piggery at Lincoln. You 
know our Newton garbage is so very 
superiorl" 

H. M. 

MY FACE 
For beauty I am not a star; 
There are others more lovely by far. 

But my face, I don't mind it, 

For I am behind it, — 
It 's the people in front that I jar! 



UNDER THE CARLIGHT 

A business man was plodding his way 
homeward through the night, his duty done. 
He looked reasonably happy and contented. 
He was not a Businessman with a big B, fit 
for a George Ade Fable. Nor apparently 
was he in need of any "First Ade to the 
Injured." He was just a plain, ordinary, 
garden- variety of man, such as the aver- 
age Federationist regards as a convenient 
attachment to her menage; and to him. 
Suburbia still was Eden. So he hummed 
happily to himself as he trudged along. 

.All day he had toiled hard in business 
harness. At noon he had e.xchanged toil 
for toil, wending a wonted way from 
counter to counter in big department stores, 
facing faces supercilious, beribboned, and 
befrizzed, that tried to freeze him into a 
sense of his incompetency regarding his 
samples of floss-silk, silesia, broadcloth — 
generally finding that particular brand 
"just sold out," and cheerfully trying for it 
elsewhere. Then back again to business. 
Now, with arms weighted by bundles, he 
was free; his day, his duty done. Soon he 
could have to himself a clear half-hour 
with his evening paper under the carlight, 
the one part of the day he could really call 
his own. No wonder he looked happy! 

He turned down Winter Street. The 
street improper was filled as usual with 
delivery wagons, plus an auto or two, 
honking impatiently. The street proper. 



that is to say, the sidewalk, was full as 
usual with a surging flood of feminin- 
ity pouring toward him irresistibly. No 
matter; he had still the curb, and his feet 
were wonted to the only narrow way still 
left him; for Winter is "Woman's Street." 
All men who enter there leave hope behind — 
as to receiving courtesy. It was enough 
that he had the curb, and that thus far 
there were no cart-hubs blocking. The 
comfort of the coming carlight loomed a 
little larger in his mind, that was all. 

He stopped. There was a congestion 
ahead. An accident? Yes; an accidental 
meeting. One woman flinging out of a 
shop had plumped into another whom she 
had not seen for full three days; and there 
was so much to tell her, right then and there ! 
The sidewalk was narrow, and they took 
up more than half; but that did not matter. 
To the ear of the business man the data 
there exchanged did not seem particularly 
important; nor warranting such congestion 
of traffic. But that, he concluded, must 
be the fault of his point of view. To the 
ant a squash might be a Mount Washing- 
ton. However, trains, even B. & A.'s, 
have a way of at least starting on schedule 
time, and the thought of the carlight loomed 
high once more. So he took to the street, 
rounded a big team, dodged two more, 
and safely circumnavigated the voluble 
obstruction. Presently he nodded cheerily 
to his favorite newsboy, who tucked a 
Transcript into his pocket for him, and 
trusted him — in view of the bundles — 
till next time for the coin. Then through 
the crowded station he deftly threaded, 
through the gates that led to his own para- 
dise, down the long walk that suddenly 
seemed wearily long to tired feet, up to the 
head of the train, into his allotted car; 
where should his seat be ? And he hummed 
some more quite happily; then paused, 
and, as one cast down from Paradise, ap- 
propriately said, "Damnation!" {Solto 
voce, be it said, as a gentleman should say 
it, if he thinks it.) 

It was Wednesday, — Matinee-day. All 
down the long car were little groups of 
women in gala attire, strung like ganglia 
of nerve-centres along a spinal cord. 
There was a joyous hum of voices, a satis- 
fied atmosphere of content. Life was easy, 
just then, to these wives and daughters of 
other men. One or two glanced toward 
him as he paused irresolute, recognized 



1G8 



THE I\IIRR(3R OF NEWTON 



him as the name-plate of a lady well 
esteemed upon their calling-list, and hence 
vouchsafed to him a careless nod; but the 
groups were intent as a whole upon their 
own affairs, that needed much discussion 
to all seeming, and every group was located 
exactly under a carlight. Under one, 
two ladies had turned the seat-back over 
and were facing each other — "Saving a 
place for Flossy," as one explained non- 
chalantly to a laughing matron who had 
asked, impertinently, if Trinity Cotirt Sta- 
tion did not have some occult meaning on 
this day. 

It was pretty to look at, the life, the happi- 
ness in those nerve-centres: and the grim 
look on the face of the weary businessman 
softened somewhat as he sank into a dark- 
ened seat, dropped his now useless paper on 
the cushion after a fruitless trial of the light, 
and laid aside therewith his disappointment. 
Did they realize, these bright people, that 
they were acting as so many dogs in the 
manger, needing no Hght to illuminate 
their witty speech, yet shutting out from 
it those to whom it served? 

Other men came bustling in; and he 
found saturnine amusement in watching 
their falling faces as with what grace they 
could they found seats on the outskirts of 
the groups and laid out work for the oculist 
in the future, endeavoring to make some use 
of the light that reached them. It was 
pagan fun : but misery loves company. 

In the heart of the nearest group, just 
within earshot, two ladies sat; somewhat 
stout, matronly, with double chins and faces 
beaming with content. They were deep 
in some matter of theology; and above 
them the brightest carlight of all shone like 
a great star softly down in a radiant halo 
on their crowns of gray-white hair; 
and it was beautiful. And one said, 
suddenly, — 

"Well: I don't care what people say — 
there are plenty of pretty good people 
in the world, even among the Unitarians!" 

To which replied the other, with admi- 
rable discernment and breadth of tolerance 
most befitting, — 

"Yes: and they are graded all the way 
up, — from Savage Unitarians up to Chris- 
tian Unitarians." 

Then that weary businessman looked 
once at that just-beyond-distance carlight, 
one last time at his useless newspaper, 
smiled to himself a lonely smile, and re- 



marked to his knobbiest bundle, "Proved!" 
And in due time his station came, or he 
came to it; and patiently he faced once 
more the mists of the outer night, and 
vanished up a winding street behind the 
trees. But on the cushion of the seat he 
left lay a Transcript, neatly folded, and 
unread. John Preston True. 



WANTED: A HAPPY MEDIUM 

Two men — one we will call "A Man of 
1857" because he lived after the manner 
of a half century ago, and the other "A 
Man of 1907 " — came across a mirror and 
stopped before it. It was a suburban 
mirror, — perhaps it was Tlu Mirror, — at 
any rate it was a magic mirror, for in it 
things could be heard as well as seen. 

"1857" had come that morning from 
the little village where he lived, a little 
village so still and cheerfully monotonous 
that life seemed there a long afternoon of 
repose, to visit a great and wonderful 
festival that was in progress in "1907's" 
notable suburban town. 

"1907" undertook to show "1857" in 
this curious magic mirror many novel 
things which he pityingly thought "1857" 
must know very little of. And so it proved; 
for as they stood before the mirror, " 1857 " 
said, "What are those strange remarks I 
hear, all in women's voices? I hear one 
say, 'Make it no trump.' Others say, 
'Double spades.' 'You took it in the 
open hand.' Sometimes they seem excited, 
and exclaim, 'Don't you know the heart 
convention?' — or 'Why didn't you notice 
my discard ? ' WTiat does it all mean ? " 

"Oh, that," said "1907," "that 's the 
women of Suburbia playing Bridge. Or 
at least, they did call it Bridge, but it 's 
known now as 'The Women's Rest Cure.' 
For a while when they called it Bridge, the 
doctors opposed it a little; they said it 
made the women nervous; but they have 
given up all opposition to it since it has 
become the Rest Cure." 

"1857" said they did n't have Rest 
Cures in Hillside where he lived, and 
"1907" said musingly that he did n't 
know, — perhaps they were just as well off 
without them. 

"Do your women stay in the Rest Cure 
all the time?" said "1857." 

"Oh, no," said "1907," "they go to 
Clubs. Look in the mirror and vou will 



OUR CONTRIBUTORS' CLUB 



1C9 



see groups of them going in every direction 
to their various clubs. They have many 
clubs, — somewhere in the Mirror you 
will see that they have "millions" of them. 
And these clubs are a power — oh, yes, 
they are a power! From their Executive 
Boards they petition everything. Recently 
one Board sent a petition to somebody or 
something — my wife told me she could n't 
quite remember what, but she thought 
it was the New York Central Railroad, 
about the South Terminal Station." 

"Did it do any good?" said "1857." 

"Well, it could n't do any harm, you 
know," replied "1907," "and it 's good 
for the women's clubs to take an interest." 

"But I see groups of men going in 
various directions, too," said "1857," 
"and it seems to be in the evening. Are 
they going to clubs, too?" 

"Oh, we have a few," admitted "1907," 
brushing aside that little view quite 
promptly, "and we go to them some, but 
for the most part we leave clubs to the 
women." 

"1857" spent all the day with "1907," 
looking in the mirror. Many things that 
he saw interested and fascinated him, but 
for the most part he had hard work to 
screw up his belated mind to comprehend 
the varied and e.xcited life which he saw 
rellected there. When the late afternoon 
came, he was quite ready to return to 
Hillside. "I don't see how you stand it," 
he said to "1907," "I really don't see 
how you stand the pace. I could n't do it, 
and I 'm glad to go home." 

"But just see what a lot you miss," 
said "1907." 

"Yes," said "1857," a little pensively; 
"but then," brightening, "see what a 
lot of time we have to miss it in ! " 

He went thoughtfully to the station, and 
journeyed tranquilly home, glad to get 
to the little village where the grass grew 
in the streets, and where a staid cow, going 
home with a jingling bell, was an event. 
He sat down with a gentle sigh of comfort 
to his supper, — to his good country supper 
of cold meat and hot biscuit and honey, 
and his cheerful cup, strong of tea and 
strong of sugar and strong of cream. And 
after supper, in slippered ease before his 
fire, he read the first edition of the Tran- 
script, and thought, good, simple man, 
that he had read the news. 

Some neighbors came in later for a 



rubber of old-fashioned whist, and at 
ten o'clock "1857" was tucked com- 
fortably in bed, for a long night's sleep. 
His last waking thought was, " I don't see 
how '1907' stands the pace — I really 
donH see how he stands it." 

Meanwhile "1907," after seeing "1857" 
off to his train, hustled into his automobile 
and was hurled home just in time to meet 
two friends who came to dine and spend the 
night. His wife met him with a little 
anxious look and the information that the 
cook had gone, but she thought Mary the 
waitress had got something together they 
could eat. The lights in the house seemed 
dim, but that was because the electricity 
had failed and they had to depend on rather 
poor gas. (Suburbia often has to.) They 
went to the table, and fortified by a good 
cocktail and enlivened by candles with rose- 
colored shades (it 's wonderful how one 
sense will help out another), they did eat 
a little of each of the live courses and called 
it "dining." 

"1907" slipped into the butler's pantry 
for a good tonic of bitters and strychnine, 
and then, quite nerved up and jolly, he 
rushed his party to the city to a play. The 
automobile got them home at midnight. 
Then, after a rarebit, "Mrs. 1907" begged 
for just one rubber (the men of Suburbia 
do sometimes kindly help their wives in 
the Rest Cure), and that brought them to 
half past one, when bed seemed the only 
thing left. 

As "1907" rolled into bed hoping for a 
few hours' sleep, his last murmur was, 
"How does '1857' stand life in that old, 
dull Hillside ? " 

The next morning, while "1857" was 
still peacefully sleeping, "1907" groaned 
himself out of bed, plunged into his cold 
tub to get a little vigor for the day, and 
at one minute past eight rushed out of 
the house and tore down the street to 
get the one minute of eight train. He 
overtook many other rushing suburbanites, 
some with muffins still in hand, all gayly 
pumping their hearts to catch the train. 
As "1907" tore along, he shouted to 
another tearing man: "No Hillside for 
me! Life in Suburbia every time! Stirring, 
striving, strenuous Suburbia!" 

Note: He got the one minute of eight 
train. It came along at fifteen minutes 
past eight. 



ADVERTISEMENTS 



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ESTABLISHED 1800 



Dame, Stoddard (^ Co. 

Importers, Wholesale and Retail Dealers 
in 

FINE CUTLERY, LEATHER GOODS, PHOTO SUPPLIES 

FISHING TACKLE 

DOG FURNISHINGS, SKATES, FANCY HARDWARE 



374 Washington Street, Boston .... Opposite Bromfleld Street 




We now have the largest and most 
complete line of 

TORTOISE 
SHELL 

GOODS 



FIRE, MARINE 

AND 

AUTOMOBILE 
INSURANCE 



Boston 

Insurance 
Company 



Ever carried by us. 

Quality the Best and Prices all Right 137 Milk Street, Boston, Mass 

Incorporated 1873 



N. C, Whitaker & Co. ^-p'*-'- $1'00o,ooo 

Manufacturers and Retailers Surplus. $2,000,000 



REPAIRING A SPEQALTY 



7 TEMPLE PLACE | RANSOM B. FULLER 

ELEVATOR Rooms 22, 23 1 President 



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GENERAL STEAMSHIP AND TOURIST AGENCY 

Representing All European Lines 
TICKETS AND TOURS TO ALL PARTS OF THE WORLD 

Telephone, 3956 Main 



W. H. EAVES, 200 Washington Street, Boston 



" Please advertise," the woman said; 
" The firm that does it not is dead, 
To bankruptcy that firm is led." 
He knew 'twas true, and so he said, 

"I'll advertise.' 




is a perfect food, as 
wholesome as it is 
delicious — highly 
nourishing, easily di- 
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wasted strength, pre- 
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Be sure that you get 
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our trade - mark on 
u^s^Ko'A every can. 
yS -r HIGHEST JtWJtRTiS IH 
H- i EUROPE and JtMERICJt 

Walter Baker & Co. Ltd. 

Established 1780 Dorchester, Mass. 




Guaranteed under Food and Drug Acts 
1906, serial number 76. 



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Old Corner Bookstore 

27-29 BROMFIELD STREET, BOSTON 



Established 1828. The oldest bookstore in 
Boston, 

Famous as the haunt of Emerson, Lowell, 
Longfellow, Holmes, and other makers of 
American literary history. 

HERE YOU WILL FIND 

Books for all purposes, books for all times 
and seasons. 

Varied editions of standard works for your 
library. 

The newest publications, American and foreign. 

Recent fiction at special prices for your sum- 
mer home. 

Books for the student, the physician, the 
scientist. 

Bibles, hymnals, prayer-books, church cal- 
endars. 

Also 

Guide books to picturesque and historic New 
England. 

Maps showing the best automobile roads. 



The mail order department brings the service 
of the store within your reach by mail or telephone, 
without the necessity of a personal visit. 



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Ladies' Tailoring Department 

SECOND FLOOR 

Take Elevator at left of Entrance 


LYMAN A. BOWKER, President 
C. J. FOGG, Treasurer 

Lyman A* Bowker 
Company 

498 BOYLSTON STREET 
BOSTON, MASS. 


MacuIIar Parker 
Company 

ANNOUNCE THAT THEIR 
FABRICS FOR 

LADIES' COSTUMES 

AND 

OUTSIDE GARMENTS 

are ready for your inspection 
in the Ladies' Tailoring De- 
partment, Second Floor. 


Furniture 

Draperies 

Wall Paper 

Frescoing and Painting 


RIDING HABITS A SPECIALTY 


400 WASHINGTON STREET 







DOLL ca, RICHARDS 

(INCORPORATED) 

FINE ARTS 



2 Park Street 



Boston 



FURS STORED and INSURED 

AGAINST FIRE, MOTH, or LOSS. 

All goods intrusted to our care are thoroughly cleaned by competent and experienced men 
before being hung in our specially prepared MOTH-PROOF VAULTS. We also care- 
fully renovate the fur before delivery. ALTERATIONS and REPAIRS may be done 
now at summer prices. Goods called for free. 



EDWARD KAKAS & SONS 

364 Boylston Street Telephone, 3216 Back Bay 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON ADVERTISER 





Hghtst Award ai 5.1. Louis nost Complete un 

NELSON M. BROWN, 90 Franklin St., BOSTON 



SWEETS to the SWEET 

There's no sweeter combination than a 
sweet girl with a box of Schrafft's Choc- 
olate bon bons. 

They are pure, delicious, satisfying — 
the kind that the most particular people 
appreciate. 

If you want something better than ordi- 
nary ask for " Schrafft's " and seethat the 
name " Schralf t " is on every chocolate. 
FOR SALE Sr 
All the leading dealers in Newton 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON ADVERTISER 



Why do you 

You, READER, we mean 



Why do you buy a Foreign-made Orange Marma- 
lade, when you can buy the ** American- 
made" Marmalade, equal to the best imported 
and superior to most of them ? 

A Marmalade you can save 23 per cent, in 

buying. 

A Marmalade made in Boston. 

A Marmalade made from Saville Oranges. 

A Marmalade guaranteed free from artificial 
coloring and preservatives. 

When buying Marmalade again, ask your 
grocer for LOGAN, JOHNSON & CO. 
" AMERICAN-MADE." 



MANUFACTURED BY 

LOGAN, JOHNSON & CO. 

Preservers 

189 and 191 STATE STREET, BOSTON, MASS. 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON ADVERTISER 



CHOCOLATES BONBONS 

THE 

NEW CHOCOLATE SHOP 



PERRY ca AYER5 

36 >¥est Street, Boston 

^ We are manufacturers. 

^ Our confectionery is guaranteed pure and fresh. 
^ We make all kinds of novelties, such as Nut, Fruit, 
Jelly, and Cream combinations. 

^ Try them and you will a^ree with us that they are 
delicious. 
Our Chocolates -will be on sale at the Bazaar 



COREY, MILLIKEN & CO 

(ESTABLISHED 1890) 

BANKERS AND BROKERS 

15 State Street, Boston 



Interest allowed on deposits. 

Advances made on collateral. 

New York and Boston Stocks bought and sold on commission 
for cash, or carried on margin. 

Private Wire to New York. 

Despatches from the leading Financial Agencies at our clients' 
disposal. 

Weekly Market Letter upon application. 



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GAS 

RANGES ^^" '5?^ 

QUICK of ACTION j!^^^ 

CLEAN AND 
COOL 

ECONOMICAL 

Your Baking 

Done in Half 

the Time 

No Dirt, Ashes 
No Trouble 

Gas-Watcr- 
Heaters 

Hot Water for Bath o 
at any Faucet at ; 
momeut's notice. Ni> 
long waits. No delay. 

NEWTON-WATERTOWN GAS LIGHT CO. 





Gamaliel P. AtKins 

Fine 
Groceries 

AGENT FOR 

Turner Centre Butter 
Turner Centre Cream 



396 Centre Street 
LANCASTER'S BLOCK 

Newton, Mass. 
Telephone 1.5 



HUBBARD'S 
The Prescription Store 

OF NEWTON 
Three Registered Pharmacists 

425 Centre Street, Newton, Mass. 
SCHUPBACH & ZELLER 

Decorators and Painters 

No. 10 PARK SQUARE 

Room No. 1 

BOSTON, MASS. 
Long Distance Telephone, Oxford No. 426 



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Have you some goods you wish to sell ? 
And do the people know it well ? 
How can you best your business tell? 

Just advertise ! 



FRANKLIN BANGHOR 

Western 

Farm and City 

Real Estate and Mortda^es 

Bought for Cash 




62 Equitable Building, BOSTON 



_65 ISromficlb street 








OuuuUN)>* 



^ashburn-crosbyJ3<^ 



^OLD M 



EDAL 




THE 


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NEWrON ADVERTISER 






This space reserved by 






THE 


STANLEY 
who n 


AUTO-CARRIAGE 
ever advertise. 


CO. 



Crawford 
Steam and 
Hot-water 
Heaters 




WALKER CS, PRATT MFG. CO., Watertown store. 24 Main St. 



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POPULAR NEW FICTION 

AUNT JANE OF KENTUCKY 

By ELIZA CALVERT HALL 

jounding in hiini 
elighlful Aunt Ja 



; in the Blue Gras 

tender pliilosophy 
Illustrated by B 



THE CASTLE OF DOUBT 

By JOHN H. WHITSON 



The story of a man who finds 
husband of a beautiful woman wh 
^een. Frontispiece in color. 1211 



Like tl 
worked c 



PHANTOM WIRES 

By ARTHUR STRINGER 

itains equally remarkable ad\ 



ilKoNu. Price, J, .50. 

ACKROYD of the FACULTY 

By ANNA CHAPIN RAY 

A novel of life in one of the larger American universities, 
embodying a study of social maladjustment with a hero 
who is a "misfit," Price, S^i. 50. 

UNDER THE HARROW 

By ELLIS HEREDITH 



B. Phillips Oppenheim's Latest and Best Novel 

THE MALEFACTOR 



This mystifying story of the strange revenge of Sir Win 

ment for a crime he did not commit rather than defend hin: 
the most languid alive with expectant interest. 

• " The Malefactor ' is an enthralling book, of much more I '"The Malefactor 

absorbing interest than ' A Maker of History' and more 1 velopment of plot and 

carefully considered than ' .A Prince of Sinners,' both of I is an .acknowledged m 
which won nothing but praise." — S\i>: Frtiiicisio Call. Ilhisl 



ave Seton, who suffered imprison- 
If at a woman's expense, will make 



nstructed with the skill in de- 
ng interest of which the author 
'— The Onllook, New Yo>k. 



LITTLE, BROWN & CO., Publishers, Boston 



^served by Courtesy of 

GEORGE K SNYDE% 

B1iOKE% 

60 State Street .' . .'. .*. 'Boston, SMass. 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON ADVERTISER 











HILL, CLARKE & CO., Incorporated 

C. A. CLARKE, Treasurer 

RAPID-WORKING MACHINE TOOLS 

BOSTON NEW YORK PHILADELPHIA 
BOSTON OFFICE ----- 156 OLIVER STREET 











THE MIRROR OF NEWTON ADVERTISER 



REMOVAL 

To 24 TREMONT STREET 

Kimball Building 
J. NEWMAN CSL SONS 

(Incorporated) 

FLORI5TS 



! BYRON E. BAILEY CO. 

Infants' Fine Wear 

Girls', Boys', Misses', and Small 
Women's Clothing 



3J-33 Winter Street 



HOTEL NOTTINGHAM 

Copley Square and Huntington Ave. 

BACK BAY, BOSTON 
A High-class Family and Transient Hotel Rooms singly or en suite 

EUROPEAN PLAN 

PRIVATE ROOMS FOR DINNERS AND MEETINGS 
GAY BROS., Proprietors FRANQS HOWE, Manager 



F. A. WALKER & CO. 

iporters, Jobbers, and Retailers of Every Variety < 

Choice 

House=furnishing 

Goods 

Also Hanufacturers of all kinds of 

Extra Strong Tinware 



ScoUay Sq. Subway Station 

Telephone, Haymarket ; 



Oriental Rug and Carpet 
Renovating Works 

Expert Weavers, Dyers, and Cleansers of all kinds 

of Rugs and Needle Art Work. Hand 

process only used in cleansing. 

Oldest in New England 

SEND FOR BOOKLET 

D. P. CHITJIAN, Manager 

58 WINTER STREET 

Telephone, 2933-1 O.xford 

Rugs kept without extra charge and insured 
during the summer months. 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON ADVERTISER 



IVIrs. FLORENCE E. 



leer of the \V. 



Clje equitable ^itt Assurance ^ocictp 

Room 56, KtiuitcUile KviilclinK, 67 Milli Street, IBoston 

The only Woman's Department connected with the Equitable in the United 
States, managed by a Woman, Woman Solicitors, Woman Medical Examiner, 
and Woman Attorney. 

WANTED. — Bright, energetic ladies, of education and refinement, who 
desire to materially increase their income, will do well to call upon or com- 
municate with Mrs. Shaal. 



The firm that will not advertise 
Pursues a course that is not wise. 



GEORGE DES GROSILLER 

LADIES' AND GENTIvEMEN'S TAILOR 

307 CENTRE STREET, NEWTON, MASS. 



Reserved by courtesy of 

DANIEL S. EMERY 



WILLIAM L. PUFFER "^'."."^".U 


,.e.3 


C O M S U 1_T 1 IS] G 




EUECTRICAL O^ ILUUMINAXI 


MCS 






30-7- ecjuixable: buildinq 




BOSTOrM, MASS. 




S..P.C.S3S.NPS, 





W. S. HAYDEN 

Groceries, Provisions, Sea Food 
Country Produce 

POULTRY and GAME IN THEIR SEASON 



3-'4 Ce 



St. Tel. 224. 254 Washington St. 
Newton, M.^ss. 



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OFFICE ESTABLISHED IN 



GRAIN, JONES, BIXBY & CO 

(Formerly Office of L. BURGE, HAYES & CO.) 



Mason Building, Water and Kilby Slreel-s 

BOSTON 



Agents 



CSUN 



INSURANCE OFFICE, of London 



i CONTINENTAL INSURANCE CO., of New York 

automotiile 'Jnjsuvancc 



WOODWORTH TREADS 

Make Automobiles Safe. They 
are Anti-skidding, Puncture-proof, 
and protect the tires from wear. 
Save half the tire expense. Any 
one can apply them without re- 
moving tire from the rim. 

Cost about one-third as much 
as new tires. 

Over ten thousand sold last year. 

LEATHER TIRE GOODS COMPANY, MFRS. 

Newton Upper Falls, Mass. 




THE MIRROR OF NEWTON ADVERTISER 



Our 

new Shoe 
for 
(Uomen 

The Shoe of the Day and the Hour 




No other shoe for women was ever accorded so favorable 
introductory sale as 



reception in its 



66 



LUXURA." 



This Perfect 
Shoe 

It has been eagerly welcomed by thousands, and it 
will be as eagerly sought by other thousands as its good 
qualities are made known 
by wearers. Elegance 
combined with luxury, 
that's " LUXURA," the 
sum and substance of shoe 
perfection, — perfect fit, 
perfect shape, perfect com- 
fort, perfect wear. You'll 
realize what enjoyment in 
footwear means when you 
make the acquaintance of 
Luxura. 




$3.00 



STYLE 668.— A shapely boot for dress wear, made 
from patent kid, cut Blucher style, rib- ^J "^ .50 
bon lace, flexible sole, medium heel. %J 



ASK TO SEE STYIE 757.— A .mart street 
pump with thin extension soles, ooze heel linings to 
prevent slipping. Made from patent ^ '^,30 
colt. Leather bow, Cuban heel. Price fj 



STYLE 763. LIKE CUT.— A fashionable street 
Blucher Oxford with patent colt vamp, dull quarters, 
three-eyelet ribbon tie. An exceptionally ^ '^,00 



stylis 



valking shoe. 



STYLE 731. A POPULAR DRESS TIE.- 

A three-eycIct tie, made from patent kid. Has flexible 
sole and Cuban heel. A graceful and stylish conception 
for dress wear. Ask to see it. Price ^ '^.SO 



R. H. WHITE COMPANY 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON ADVERTISER 



Invalid Silver 
Repairing, Replating, Refinishing 

Tea Sets, Pitchers, Old Candlesticks, Spoons, 
Forks, etc., thoroughly and reasonably done. 




These two engravings 
illustrate the range of our 
ability to repair and re- 
store to its original con- 
dition broken or dented 
ware which is seemingly 
useless. 




MUNROE 6i LANE, Silversmiths 

Successors to -J. N. Lindsay & Co. 
Bulldlnj. 403 Washindlon Street. Room 4. Elevator. Telephon 










/NATIO/NAL 

4 and 6 CYLINDER 

50 and 75 nORSC=POWER 

$3,500 and $5,000 

The Superior of all American Cars 

WAYNE 

30-35 H. P. lOSoinch Wheel Base 



$2,500 



REO 



Runabouts 
Climb Hills 



A 10 horse-power car that carries two to four persons 
twenty-two miles on a gallon of gasoline. Trim, 
speedy, and powerful. 

TWO AND FOUR PASSENGERS 

$650 $675 

A demonstration will convince you 



LIMSCOTT MOTOR CO. 



J63 Columbus Ave. 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON ADVERTISER 



1875- 1907 

CONFECTIONERS and CATERERS 

For thirty-two years we have served 
the particular trade of Newton. 

Your patronage has been liberal and 
constant. 

We shall continue to give you the 
best in quality and service. 

JAMES PAXTON & CO. 

Eliol Blork, Newton, Mass. 



Genuine 

Hatchet Brand 

Canned Fruits and 
Vegetables 

Bear this Trade-mark on each label 



FANCY CHINA and GLASSWARE 

Suitable for Wedding and 

Holiday Gilts. 




E. E. SNYDER 

392 Centre Street 

NEWTON ^ 

and are guaranteed to comply with all 

the requirements of the Pure Food Law. 

Sold by High-class Grocers in 

All New England Cities 
and Towns 

The Twitchell-Champlin Go. 

FACTORIES: 
Portland, Hiram, Waldoboro, and 
Sedgwick, Maine; Wolcott, New 
York. 

ATWOOD MARKET 

PRESCOTT & QOINN, Proprietors 
DEALERS IN 

Fine Groceries^ Provisions, FisK, 
Better than Coffee Oysters, Fruit, and Vegetables 

, . ^^ - - Game of all kinds in their season 

Richer than Corree 

• 1 1 /^^ fC Telephones J22-2 and 123 

OeVen- eighths V^Otiee 374, 375, and 330 centre street, Newton 




THE MIRROR OF NEWTON ADVERTISER 



dcnr^ Sicgel Co. 

Beg to announce that they 
are shoTuing the Largest 
and 'Best <Assortment of 

Bof^s\ Youths\ and 
Wen's Clothing . . . 

to be found in the City of 
"Boston. Clothing Depart- 
ment, Third Floor. 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON ADVERTISER 



Mdlish^fiyficldCo.,Inc. 

ESTABLISHED J873 

MaKcrs o! Furniture 

AT BOSTON 

Office, Milk, and Workshop 
23 Vale Str.et . . ROXBURY DISTRICT 

Telephone, 303-3 Roxbuev 



FOUR LECTURES 

BY 

Miss Mary Lewis Speare 

The Science and Art of Expression 
Value and Defects of the Kindergarten 
Use and Charm of Humor in Life and 

Literature 
The Power of Individuality 

Given before Women's Clubs and Schools 

Address 27 Wesley Street, Newton, Massachusetts 



REES & BERNIER 

Dealers In 

Groceries, Provisions 

Sea Food 

400 Centre Street, Newton, Mass. 

Opposite B. & A. Depot. Telephone 444 



Printed Daily on Mount Washington 



vton visitors are cordially 



ed to call at 



Before your visit read " MOUNT WASHING- 
TON : A Handbook for Travelers," by Frank 
H. Burt, a complete historical and descriptive 
guide, fully illustrated. Cloth, 50c.; paper, 25c.« 
Address 

FRANK H. BURT, 

94 Charlesb»nfc Road, Newton 



Does your Furniture need Repairing? 

Would your Dining-table look better with 
the Top Refinished? 

WE CAN DO IT PROMPTLY 
AND WELL ^ v^ ^ ^ ^ 



Send for an Estimate of the Cost 



THE PLIMPTON -HERVEY CO. 

COMPLETE HOUSE FURNISHERS 

Furniture, Carpets, Rugs, and Ranges 



21-25 Washington Street, Boston 

XXX 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON ADVERTISER 










%\yt J^omc of 

Largest Shoe Factory in the World. 
3,300 Employees. 10,000 Pairs o£ Women's Shoes Dally. 

This requires and consumes every 
day the hides and skins of 7,800 
Kids and Goats. 300 Horses and 
Colts, 300 Calves, and 423 Steers. 



URES sometimes tell a story better than words. You are interested in these 
inly for what they signify. They signify the universal satisfaction afforded to 
vearers of " Queen Quality " Shoes. For no logic can dispute that it is only 
)ecause of the exceptional merits of "Queen Quality" Shoes that women show 
,o marked a preference for them over all others in the world. 

Interesting features of this great factory are the Recreation Departments, 
conducted by and for the Employees. These include a Gymnasium with sixty Shower Baths, 
Bowling Alleys, Billiard Room, Library and Reading Room, Restaurant, Barber Shop, 
Music and Dance Hall for women, and a weekly newspaper known as Queen Quality 



THOMAS G. PLANT COMPANY 

MANUFACTURERS 

J. A. HOUSTON COMPANY, Sole Boston Agency 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON ADVERTISER 



FURNITURE 

CARPETS, STOVES, 

AND RANGES 

Art Squares a Specialty 

CASH OR CREDIT EXTENDED to ALL 
W. I. LAMSON 

132 Moody Street - WALTHAM 

Next door to Post-office 



JOHN BEAL 

DEALER IN 

Firsl-class Groceries 

Fish and Meats of all kinds. 
Also Fruits and Vegetables 
in their season 

849 Washington Street, Newtonville 

Telephone, 428-4 Newton North 



COLURULLO BROTHERS 

Foreign and Domestic Fruits 

Of all kinds in their season. 
Fresh Vegetables every day. 
Fine Grocery Goods at Low 
Prices. Cigars, Tobacco, and 
Confectionery 

289 Walnut St. and 809 Washington St. 

Newtonville, Mass. 



GATES 

MILLINERY 

80 Bowers Street 

Opposite Station 

NEWTONVILLE 

MASSACHUSETTS 



E. F. PARTRIDGE 

Registered pharmacist 

Washington, corner Walnut Street 

NEWTONVILLE, MASS. 
Telephone, 161=3 North 

A, A, KNEELAND 
Dry ^nd Fancy Goods 

Laces, Hosiery, and 

Underwear. , , . 

NEWTONVILLE 

Telephone Connection, 109-3 Newton North 



NORRIS COMLEY 

WHOLE.SALE AM) KETAIL 



George H. Gregg & Son 

Undertakers F JL O R IS T 



Masonic Building: 

Newtonville, Mass. 



LEXINGTON - - MASS. 

Telephone, 242-1 Lexington 
Flowers for Weddings, Partlea, Balls, Dances, etc. 
Floral Designs of Every Description Artistically Ar- 
ranged at Short Notice and very Reasonable Prices. 

rF~ Plt'ase mail op telephone, and your oixlpr will be 
filled at once and delivered to any part of the city or 
suburbs. 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON ADVERTISER 



WE should be accepted 
as tea experts in any 
country in the world. 

And all we know of bud 
and leaf, curing and hand- 
ling, strength and fragrance 
and flavor, you may find in 
every package of tea we sell. 

60 cents a pound, in pound, half-pound, and 
quarter-pound canisters. All grocers. 

CHASE & SANBORN'S TEAS 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON ADVERTISER 



Established 1887 

OVER'S yVIARKET 

THE BEST IS THE CHEAPEST' 

Is our motto 



MASONIC BUILDING 
NEWTONVILLE 



D. B. NEEDHAM 

Bvi2 anb jfanc^ GoobQ 

fl Call on us for Cambrics, Longcloth, Lawns, 
Linens. Ladies', Children's, and Men's Hosiery, 
Gloves, and Furnishings. 

fl We carry the largest lines of Laces and Em- 
broideries in the City. 

Trade at Home and build up your Town. 
^ No long waiting for your change or package 
when you trade at this store. 

Prompt Service Courteous Clerks 

Needham's Dry Goods Store 

837 Washington Street Newtonville 




PHOTOGRAPHER 

Home Portraiture, Groups and Views 



BOSTON. 30 Huntington Avenue 
BROOKLINE, 27 Harvard Street 
ROXBURY, 2832 Washington St. 
NEWTONVILLE. Opposite Rail- 
road Station 



TELEPHONE, 
283-2 Newton North 





HENRY W. BATES 


WILLIAM L. C NICHOLS 


GROCERIES, 




MEATS, GAME, 




... and ... 


R. F. CRANITCH 


PROVISIONS 


laaintcr auD ?Becorator 




Glazing, Staining, and Paper Hanging 




- 


^EWTO^VILLE, MASS. 


254 Walnut Street Newtonville, Mass. 


MARKET GROCERIES 


TELEPHONE, 743-1 Ne^vton North 


265 Walnut Street 267 Walnut Street 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON ADVERTISER 



DENNISON'S DECORA- 
TIONS and FAVORS ^ ^ 



FOR ALL 

SOCIAL EVENTS 

TABLE COVERS NAPKINS DOILIES LUNCH SETS 

CANDLE SHADES BONBON HOLDERS 

ICE CUPS FESTOONS 

and FAVORS 




EVERYTHING IS MADE FROM 

DENNISON'S CREPE PAPER 

All colors of the rainbow and many beautiful and effective designs 

^In our Art Department we make a specialty of showing original and appro- 
priate creations for each holiday season. 'We shall be glad to explain their 
manufacture to you. 



DENNISON MANUFACTURING CO. 



26 FRANKLIN STREET 



BOSTON 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON ADVERTISER 



FRANK L. TAINTER 

Circulating Library 

NewtODYille News Depot 

All the Leading Daily Papers, 
Magazines, and Periodicals 
for Sale 

Toys, Stationery, and General Merchandise 

AGENT FOR LEWANDO 

Cigars and Tobacco 

821 WASHINGTON STREET 

Brick Storage 
Warehouse 

COAL and WOOD 

N. W. TUPPER 

49 Walnut Street, Newtonville, Hass. 




WIINPIELD S. SLOCUM 

Attorney and Counsellor at Law 

43 TREMONT STREET 

BOSTON 

NOTARY PUBLIC 
Cily Solicilor cj( Newton Residence 

Office 424 Walnut Street 
City Hall, West Newton Newtonville 



Daniels ®. Hewlett Co. 

PAINTING, DECORATING, and HARD WOOD FINISHING 



Office, 40 State Street, Room 40 
Boston 



E Connections 



Shop, 19-21 Scotia Street 
Boston 



Branch, Newtonville, Mass. 



Miggins & INickerson 

BUILDERS 

Estimates Furnished on all Kinds 
of Buildings 



HOUSES 



( Built to suit Purcliasers 
■\ To let at ALL PRICES 
I And LAND FOR SALE 



C. STROUT Si SONS 

(grocers 

843 WASHINGTON STREET, NEWTONVILLE 
TELEPHONE 761-3 



King Arthur Flour 

and Strout's Salad Cream 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON ADVERTISER 



DOYLE & MURRAY 

Sanitary Engineers 
and Plumbers 

FURNACES AND HEATING 
80-82 Bowers Street - - - Newton ville 

Opposite Depot 

Telephone, 703-4 Newton North 
J. P. DOYLE, Residence, 11-2 Newton South 

Telephone, 424-4 Newton North 

Newtonville Cab Company 

THOMAS A. BRADY, Proprietor 



Hack, Livery, and Office, Partridge Block, 
Boarding Stable Opposite Depot, Newtonville 



Repairing promptly attended to 

Theodore 0. Djornson 
ELECTRICIAN 

All kinds of Electrical Construction 
and Repairing 

92 BOWERS STREET 

(Opposite Station) 

NEWTONVILLE, MASS. 
Estimates Furnished 

GEORGE W. MILLS 

Funeral Director and Embalmer 

CLAFLIN BUILDING 

817-819 Washington Street 

NEWTONVILLE 



Modern conveniences of chapel and 
TELEPHONES 



Office, 1 12-3 

Residence, 176-5 Newton North 




ROSS STEAM CAR 

Touring Car - - $2800 
Runabout - - - $2250 

CRAFTS STREET NEWTONVILLE 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON ADVERTISER 



JOHN F. PAYNE 

Hpotbccarv 

277 Walnut Street, Newtonville 



H. H. CARTER & CO. 

Carter's Library 

PAPER MERCHANTS 

ENGRAVERS 

STATIONERS 



Wedding and Visiting Cards 

Wholesale and Retail 

5 Ashburlon Place - BOSTON 



Telephone, 21578 Newton North 



JOHN W. WEEKS, 

President. 



SAMUEL W. FRENCH, 

Treasurer. 



Newtonville Trust Company 

NEWTONVILLE, Mass. 

This Company wants your deposit account. 

It allows you interest, according to its rules, on your balance as it stands from day 
to day, and computes it monthly. 

IT WOULD LIKE TO RENT YOU A SAFE IN ITS BURGLAR- 
PROOF VAULT. 

ANY INFORMATION WILL BE CHEERFULLY GIVEN 



H. W. Orr Company 

PLUMBERS 

HARDWARE 

Steam, Hot Water, and Gas Fitting 



Gas Fixtures and Kitchen Furnishings 

STOVES, RANGES, FURNACES 

Newtonville = Massachusetts 



Compliments of 
Friend 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON ADVERTISER 



MASSACHUSETTS 
WHARF COAL CO. 

Invites your patronage, always having in 
stock the celebrated Lackawanna Coal for 
domestic use and the high-grade Jeddo 
Lehigh for those having heaters with a 
particularly strong draught. 

Mr. H. H. Keith, our Newtonville 
representative, will be pleased to receive 
your favors at our Order Office, 

793 Washington Street 

NEWTONVILLE, MASS. 

Boston Office, 43 Kiiby Street 



l^eblitns (Sifts 



SILVER 



CUT GLASS 




,, p ^-^uu,-;.:^ — 39MI 

"dEWELER^JSa 

No Goods but Good Goods 
at any price 



with other firms you must compete. 
Or seek a silent village street. 
Where there's no need Cor enterprisi 
And ne'er a chance to advertise. 









A. KLINE 




WILLIAM L. PUFFER 


LADIES' m GENTLEMEN'S 






Merchant Tailor 




ILLUMINATING 


Cleaning, Pressing, Altering, 
and Repairing 




ENGINEER 


MODERATE PRICES 

799 Washington Street 
Newtonville 




1 PLAN TEST, RESIDENCES 

AND PUBLIC BUILDINGS 
suPERvrsE FACTORIES 

THE LIGHTING OF STREETS 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON ADVERTISER 



THE 



FIRST NATIONAL BANK 

OF WEST NEWTON 

Capital, $100,000 Surplus, $50,000 



OFFICERS 

CHARLES E. HATFIELD, 

President 



JOSEPH B. ROSS, 

Cashier 



Safe Deposit Vaults for tKe Storage of Valuables 



mmrs^maynard^Pomr 

announce an Attractive 
Display of WEDDING SIL- 
VER of marked individu- 
ality, as well as rare pieces 
of BRIDE'S Jewelry in 
Pearls and Diamonds, and 
Favors out of the con- 
ventional orderfor Brides- 
maids and Ushers. 



THE BERKELEY BUILDING 

416 Boylston Street, - BOSTON 



Telephone, 1427 Oxford 



L. STARR & CO. 

Ladies'^ CKildren's^ and Misses' 

Wearing Apparel and 
Millinery 

35-41 WINTER STREET 

Boston, Mass. 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON ADVERTISER 



CHARLES D. CABOT I H. M. CALDWELL CO. 



WITH 

Morris, Murch & Butler 

97 SUMMER STREET 

BOSTON 

FURNITURE and BEDDING 

Walter H. Knapp 

FLORIST 

North Street - - - Newtonville 



Books Worth Buying and Worth Reading 



THE VALUE OF LOVE 



Value of Kriendshir i 



Laiv'eU'm.i, . I 
Fuiriimpilir 
Edition ,1. / 



silk lined, 
ers. Prifc, 



Telephone, Newton W« 



THE VALUE OF SIMPLICITY 



MY LADY'S POINT OF VIEW 

By Adrian- Iiorio. " jMY LADY " will find this 
(listinrt improvement over the ordinary Memo n 
Bi.iik. Printed in two i-olors on highly finish)'.- 
p;iper. Bound in English cloth, titles and coed 
design in gold. Size, 8 x 10. ver 

In a hox matching the binding. Price. S2.-*in. 

Half mottled morocco, embossed, full gold edges. 



1-page Illaxirated Catalog. 



l£8tablt8beb 1798 

RICHARD BRIGGS CO. 
Designers and Importers 

OF 

Fine CHina and Glass 



116 Boylston Street 

BOSTON 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON ADVERTISER 



P. P. ADAMS 

Dig Dry Goods Department Store 

General Dry Goods, Cloaks, Suits, Furs, Shoes, Groceries, etc. 
"Money refunded if not satisfied" 

133=135=13'7=13Q Moody Street, Waltham 



COMPLIMBNTS OF A FRIEND 



Wadsworth, Howland & Co. 

(INCORPOKATED) 

MANUFACTURERS OF 

Paints, Varnishes, Artists' Materials, and Lead Corroders 

Factories at Maiden, Mass. 

BOSTON STORES: 82 and 84 Washington Street; 216 and 218 Clarendon Street 
BRANCH STORES : Pasadena, Cal. ; Chicago, 111. ; Springfield, Worcester, and Amesbury, Mass. 
DIRECTORS 

Charles F. Howland Henry A. Robblns John Wadsworth Lucius Turner 

Frederick A. Gunnison Arthur P. Felton Hiram W. Wadsworth 

xlii 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON ADVERTISER 



Boston Cash Grocery Co. 

COLLAGAN & HUGO, Proprietors 

SELECTED 

(flroccrics^ Cras, Coffees, 

Molasses, Olive Oil, etc. 

DOMESTIC AND IMPORTED 

Try "Our Famous" Coffee 

33 Cents per Pound, or 3 1-2 Pounds for SI. 00 

WASHINGTON STREEf. WEST NEWTON 



ROBINSON & 5HEPARD 

p>aintcv!3 auD paper Bangers 

INSIDE WORK A SPECIALTY 



Shop, 1271 Washington Street 

WEST NEWTON 

Residence, 18 Pearl Street 

Telephone, -1 1-5 Newton North 

KALSOMINING PICTURE FRAMING 



North British & Mercantile 
Insurance Company 



U. S. Branch, 76 William Street 
NEW YORK 

ROBT. & ALEX. BENNETT 

INSURANCE AND NEWS AGENTS 

WEST NEWTON, MASS. 



M. FRANK LUCAS 

Builders' Finish 

Greenhouse Stock, Cypress Gutters 
Lumber, Kiln-dried Floors 



MILL AND YARD 

Lucas Court ami Border Street 

WEST NEWTON, MASS. 

TELEPHONE 



Telephone Connection Established 1861 

MEINRV F. CATB 

(Successor to Stephen Y. Cate) 

Funeral Director and Embalmer 

1351 Washington Street, West INewton 




Northeastern Department 



C. E. ROBERTS, Manager I 

W. H. ALLEN, Assistant Manager 

Telephone 
101 Milk Street, Boston, Mass. Connection 

xliii 



B. S. HATCH 

COAL AND WOOD 

Hay, Straw, Grain, and Feed 

Office, 1288 Washington Street 

Yard, 200 Webster Street 

WEST NEWTON, MASS. 



THE MIRROR OF XEWTOX ADVERTISER 



SUMMER STVUES IIN 

Muslin Underwear 




Paris Hand-made Lingerie, 
Appenzell Embroidered Effects 
from Switzerland, Hand-made 
Pieces from Germany, and Nov- 
eltier in the Finer Domestic 
Makes, including 

Lawn, Mull, French 
Nainsook, Handkerchief 
Linen, and Cambric. 

UNDERMUSLINS IN 
Fine Pattern Laces 

Filet, Cluny, Point de Paris, 
Hand-made Torchon, Novelty 
Laces, and Hand Embroideries. 

GOWNS. 

3.50 5.00 S.50 to 75.00 

CHEMISES. 

1. 00 2.00 3.50 to 16.00 

DRAWERS. 

50c. 1. 00 1.50 to 13.50 

CORSET COVERS. 

50c. 1. 00 1.50 to 12.00 

WHITE SKIRTS 

Particularly adapted for wear 
with evening costumes and 
summer dresses. Others in 
shorter lengths for walking 
wear. 

3.50 5.00 8.50 to 75.00 

HATCHED SETS. 

Fine Bridal Sets in perfectly 
matched patterns, exxlusive 
with Chandler & Co. 

10.00 to 125.00 



eijaiitrUr H Co. 1^^"""°^^ 



STREET 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON ADVERTISER 



Superior Engraving 

For 



The Allen School 



WeddinO'S PctrtlGS ^ School for Wholesome Boys 



And all Social Events 



Die Embossed Stationery 

COLUMBIA ENGRAVING CO. 



street, BOSTON 



ALFRED E. VOSE, JOHN A. DANIELS, 

Newtonville. Newton Centre. 



PREPARATION GIVEN FOR ANY 

COLLEGE OR TECHNICAL 

SCHOOL 

College entrance certificates. Junior department 
prepares for Newton High School. Individual ,in- 
struction. 

For Illustrated CATALOcnE, describing special 
features, apply to the 

Head Masters, WEST NEWTON, Mass. 

ALBERT EDWARD BAILEY, A.B. 
EVERETT STARR JONES. A.B. 



HOWARD WATCHES 




CO 

H 
> 
2 

a 

> 

u 
o 

■n 

O 

c 
> 
r 

H 

■< 



TJE who is indifferent to time wears out the patience of every one and fails. The world ceases 
to do business with him. The man who knows the value of time carries a HOWARD 
WATCH, and is always on time. Promptness bespeaks confidence. 

E. HOWARD WATCH CO., Waltham, Mass. 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON ADVERTISER 



F. T. BURGESS 

Plumber and Gasfitter 



DEALER IN 



Steam and Gas Fitters' and Plumbers' 
Supplies 



Corner Washington and Cherry Streets 
WEST NEWTON 

FRED. L. COOK 

Imported and Domestic 

GROCERIES 

CHOICE BUTTER A SPECIALTY 

Telephone Connection 

\Vashington Street, corner Elm 
WEST NEWTON 



A. J. STEADMAN 



Tailor, 



Clothier, 

and 

Outfitter 



WASHINGTON AND ELM STREETS 
WEST NEWTON 



You'd scarce expect one in this age 
To stand upon the business stage^ 
Yet never meet the people's eyes 
Because he would not advertise. 



Telephone J. F. Payne, 21578 Newton North 



GEORGE BREEDEN 



HARRY L. GLEASON 



REPAIRER OF 



Real Estate ^^^f^bes, Clocks, Jewelry, 

Eyeglasses, Spectacles, 

FIRE, LIFE, and ACCIDENT Qraphophones. nusic Boxes, 

H^I^IIU AlVI/^r *^°" Clubs, Umbrellas. Silverware, Novelties, Type- 
Ill OUIlW^llV^L writers, and all other small articles. 

283 Walnut Street 813 Washington s treet - NEWTONVILLE 

NEWTONVILLE - - - HASS. TELEPHONE, NEWTON NORTH 112-1 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON ADVERTISER 



WILLIAM O. HARPIS 

Carpenter and Builder 



Rice Brothers 
F^ine Groceries 



Jobbiiis of All Kinds 

Estimates on all kinds of work cheerfully given 

RESIDENCE AND SHOP 
282 Melrose Street 

(Next to Taylor Block) 



TELEPHONE CONNECTION 



995 Watertown Street 

Auburndale ^ WEST INEWTOIN, MASS. 

Telephone, 232-3 Newton West 



M. BROOKMAN 

laDicjS' Catlor 

Cloahs, Suits, jackets, and -fur Garments 
)VIade to Order 

Perfect fit and best workmanship guaranteed 
Also Gentlemen 's Clothing repaired at Moderate Price: 



V. A. PLUTA 



Meats of all Kinds 

FRESH FRUITS . . 
AND VEGETABLES 



39 1 Auburn Street 



Corner Auburn and Lexington Streets 

Auburndale, Mass. I AUBURNDALE 



CURTIS & SEDERQUIST 

Bankers and Brokers 

Stocks and Bonds bought and sold for investment 
or commission 



WEEKLY MARKET LETTER MAILED FREE 



J 9 Congress Street 
BOSTON 



52 Broadway 
NEW YORK 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON ADVERTISER 



ATTENTION 

IS CALLED TO THE 

Savings Bank at West Newton 

Incorporated 1887 

Deposits are received in amounts of from $i to $i,ooo. Are placed 
on interest quarterly, January lo, April lo, July lo, and October lo. Divi- 
dends payable January 15 and July 15. 

DEPOSITS, $1,325,000 

An absolutely safe place for the savings of Individuals, Societies, and Associations 

LOANS ON REAL ESTATE 

GEORGE P. BULLARD, ROLAND F. GAMMONS, id. 

President Treasurer 

Hours, 8.30 to 12 and 1 to 3 Saturday, 8.30 to 12 only 



1907 

SPRING-and-SUMMER 

Are now on exhibition, comprising Tailored Suits, 
Garments, Skirts, Costumes, Lace and Lingerie 
Blouses, Tailored Linen Waists, French Embroi- 
dered Linen Collars, Jabots, Belts, Gloves, Veil- 
ings, etc. 

Your early inspection is earnestly solicited. 

G. VS^ILDES SMITH 

158 TREMONT STREET, BOSTON 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTOX ADVERTISER 



PRIEST, PAGE CS, CO. 

143 and 145 FRANKLIN STREET 
BOSTON 



agents for 
THE HOWE SCALE CO. 

Howe Scales 
THE ATHA STEEL CO. 

Cast Steel 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON ADVERTISER 



WILLIAM CAPSTICK 

WEDDING DECORATIONS AND FUNERAL 

EMBLEMS 

Choice Cut Flowers in their season, also 

House and Bedding Plants 



P. A. McVICAR 

Carriage Maker 



Aspen and Hawthorn Avenues 

AUBURNDALE, MASS. 

FDANK W. BRIDGES 

IPEALKK IX 

Fancy and Staple Meats, 

Fish, and Groceries 

Quality the Best Prices the Lowest 



NEAR 283 AUBURN STREET 
AUBURNDALE 



335 Auburn Street 

AUBUDNDALE 



H. M. CHILDS 

Fancy Dry Goods 

STATIONERY, CHINA 
WARE, TOYS, ETC. 



289 zAuhnm Street, AUBURNDALE 



BORDEN'S 

MALTED 

MILK 

Is the BEST that Science 
Can Produce 

You are the Loser if Satisfied 
with a Substitute 



JoKnson & Keyes Express Co. 

FURNITURE AND 
PIANO MOVING 



AUBURNDALE and BOSTON 

EXPRESS. 
AUBURNDALE - - MASS. 

Telephone, 271-1 Newton West 
Telephone, 528-3 Newton West 

EKLUND &" GORDON 

Painters, Decorators 

Glaziers and Paper-hangers 

PAPERS, PICTURE MOULDINGS, ETC. 



TAYLOR BLOCK 
Auburndale . o . riass. 

GEORGE E. JOHNSON 



Hay, Grain, 

and Feed 



Lexington Street, Auburndale 

Telephone. 271-3 Newton West 



THE MIRROR OF NEWTON ADVERTISER 




nn nlg-w 

LASELL SEMINARY FOR YOUNG WOMEN 

AUBURNDALE. MASS. 

An ideal location in Newton is one of its distinctive features. For illustrated cat- 
ilogue, giving full particulars, address 

C. C. BRAGDON, Principal. 



ELECTRICAt 



WILLIAM L. PUFFER 



TROUBLE 
ENGINEERING 



I investigate accidents, poor results in ele 
plants, difficulties of operation, things your 
says are wrong. 

I coach lawyers while preparing electrical c 
give expert testimony. 

I straighten out specifications, make examina 



flctcbcr of Huburndalc 



The F. W. FLETCHER CO. 



FLORIST 



The best of Flowers at the lowest prices 
possible for quality. 

Free delivery on sizable orders to all col- 
leges, hospitals, or anywhere in Greater 
Boston. 

Orders for Flowers telegraphed to all prin- 
cipal cities of United States and Europe. 
TELEPHONE CONNECTION 















rillRAL I'AlMThU.S 

and DECOR/VrOILS 

WALL PAPER5 nnci HANGINGS 
DRAPERIES AND PURNirUPE 

(.47 BOYLSTON STREE 1 

Opposite Publiu I.iukauv 




1 









THE MIRROR OF NEWTON ADVERTISER 



BUY AND SELL 

REAL ESTATE 

TMROUGl-I 

WILLIAM H. RAND 

WITH 

EDWARD T. HARRINGTON CO. 

293 WASHINGTON STREET - - - BOSTON 



RENT PROPBRTV 

TMROUQM 

MRS. WILLIAM H. RAND 

31 CHESTNUT STREET, WEST NEWTON 

Telephone, 204-5 Newton West Residence, 247 Austin Street 

No charge for consultation 

DR. IN. LOUISE RAIND 

€)!3tcopatl)ic pi)v0idan 

WEST NEWTON, MASS. 

RESIDENCE OFFICE 

247 AUSTIN STREET 60 CHESTNUT^STREET 

Residence Phone Monday, Wednesday, Friday 

9n4-s Newton West Other hours by appointment 



Tin- MfRNOR OF XKWTOX ADVFimSKIi 



ALWAYS ASK FOR 



WHITTEMORE'S POLISHES 

THE WORLDS STANDARD 

The Oldl-st and Largest Maniifurlur.TS of Shoe Foli-li in Iho World 
ONCE USED ALWAYS USED 



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Quick 

WHITE 

MAKES DIRTY 
CANVAS SHOES 

CIEAN«TE 



ClUICKLY>H'EASttY 
APPLIED. 

ALSO CLEANS 

ALL ARTICLES MADE 

FROHWHITECAM 



•ELIIf, 
•BOSH 



; all kinJs of Russet and Brown Boots 
all Patent and Sliiny Leather Shoes 
i Box C.ilf, Vici Kid, and all fine hlaik 
and Boys' Shoes. Produces a patenl 



DIRTY CANVAS SHOES 

MADE PERFECTLY CLEAN AND WHITE BY USING 
WHITTEWORE'S 

"QUICK WHITE" 

COMPOUND 

In liquid form, so can be QUICKLY and EASILY 
applied. No white dust. No rubbing off. 

To those using the hard white calces put uji in metal or 
wood boxes, would say that by using '* Quick White " 
you will have your shoes all finished, before you could get 
the hard cakes softened up enough to be^in usitig. 

Just try "Quick While" once, and it will work so 
quick and easy and make your shoes look so clean 
and while that you will always use it. 

For 1907 a sponge in every bottle, so always ready 



Two Sizes, 10 and 23 Cents 

Also the follow'ing colors for Canvas shoes: li.iby 
Blue, Alice Blue, Red, Green, Pink, Lavender, Cham- 
pagne, Coral, Purple, Light and Dark Cray. In the same 
sizes and at the same prices as •• Quick White. " 

Whitemore's Polishes won the "GRAND PRIZE " .it SI. 
Lou's over all coirpslitcs 



MAY 20 190? 

THE MIRROR OF NEWTON ADVERTISER 



CompUments of a Friend 



r '07 



W. J. FURBUSH 

GMce Groceries and ProTisions 

FRUITS. VEGETABLES. CANNED GOODS 

Vermont Creamery Butter in Large or Small Quantities 

Strictly Fresh Hennery Eggs a Specialty 

64 CHESTHOT STREET, WEST NEWTON, MASS. 

TELEPHONES, 236-3 and 56 Newton West 

ANTHONY LOUIS 
1255 WASHINGTON STREET 

WEST NEWTON, MASS. 

Furniture Made to Order 

We have a large number of (ine photographs of 
furniture in old colonial houses 

Upholstering, Carpet Cleaning, Reflttlng,*Rela}lng 

Drapery Poles and Rods. Awninss. Mattresses, Cushions. 

Drapery woik and Austrian draw shades 

WINDOW SCREENS MADE TO ORDER 



Main 3450 



TELEPHONES 



West Newton 310 



WILLIAM H. COLGAN 

HIGH-GRADE 

Electrical Construction 

302 Equitable Building. Boston 
1385 Washington Street. West Newton 

Incandeacentand Power Wiring. Telephones, Bella, and 
Q\» Lighting. Dynamos, Motors, Switchboards 

Makes a specialty of repair work 
Estimates furnished 



DR. C. E. A. ROSS 

DENTIST 

Telephone connection WcSt NcWtOn 



OR. FRED M. LOWE 



LILL & VAHEY 

DEALERS IN 

New and Antique Furniture 

Fiimiuire Repairing and Polishing 
Mattresses Renovated 

Radiators Cleaned and Bronzed 

17 CHESTNUT STREET 

WEST NEWTON. MASS. 

Telephone connection 



A. F. FISKE & CO. 
Plumbing, Heating 

And Kitchen Furnishings 




987 Watertown Street 

WEST NEWTON, MASS. 

Telephone connection 



Newton Centre Trust Company 

Bray Block, Newton Centre 

CAPITAL. $100,000 SURPLUS FUND. $103,000 

TOTAL ASSETS. $1,350,000 



DWIGHT CHESTER. Praident 
EDWARD H. MASON. Vice-President FRANK L. RICHARDSON. Treasmer 



DIRECTORS 

DAVIDTH. ANDREWS FRANK J. HALE 

MELLEN BRAY SEWARD W. JONES 

DWIGHT CHESTER EDWARD H. MASON 

ERASTUS T. COLBURN EDGAR W. WARREN 



Interest at 2% allowed on Daily Balances of $500 and upwards 



Higher rates on deposits subject to ten days' notice of withdrawal 



ACCOUNTS SOLICITED 



